


Give the World to You

by asingerofsongs, MayGlenn



Series: Stars and Skies [17]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: A Disturbance In The Force, Aftercare, Anal Sex, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst with a Happy Ending, Asexual Domme Rey, Asexuality Spectrum, BDSM, Birthday Presents, Clones, Cooking, Cuddling & Snuggling, Drinking, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Force Visions, Foreplay, Hangover, Hurt/Comfort, Kes Loves Being a Grandpa, Kid Fic, Kink Negotiation, M/M, Original Character Death(s), Past Sexual Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Rey has female friends finally, Rope Bondage, Sex Toys, Sickfic, Stormtrooper Culture, The First Order Is Shitty, shit gets real
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-23
Updated: 2016-11-07
Packaged: 2018-08-16 13:03:08
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 19
Words: 84,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8103304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/asingerofsongs/pseuds/asingerofsongs, https://archiveofourown.org/users/MayGlenn/pseuds/MayGlenn
Summary: "Okay—so am I supposed to go solo? Because I’m not going to," Rey told Luke. “If I can.” 

  They had been talking the other day—Poe with his head in her lap and Finn with his head on Poe's leg, after a "picnic" on the observation deck—and Rey had remarked that she wasn't sure she liked the idea of any of them going on any missions without the others as backup. They were a family now.
"You don't need to go alone. I won't be there, but you're free to take Poe and Finn. Think of it as your first sanctioned solo mission..." Luke said with a grin. Rey rolled her eyes. He was never going to let that go…   "Just make sure you ask Leia. We don't want a repeat of what happened last time." Luke lowered his voice: "She's the evil twin."...In which our heroes use some time alone to get up to shenanigans, another pilot/ex-stormtrooper romance is blooming, Rey has a Force vision about Finn's past, and, for better or worse, Rey, Finn, and Poe find exactly what they are looking for.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> In the interest of content warning, this story is considerably less fluffy than most of the Series has been so far. If discussions of past sexual abuse or the kind of mass death that only the Empire/First Order/actual Nazis can dish out is not something you want to read, we'll provide trigger-warnings for each chapter with said material so you can read at your own discretion. 
> 
> We promise the fluff will still be there. But shit is getting real.

"Thank you for coming, Rey. I am sorry it is...early," Luke said. He was young once, too. "I, ah, have felt a Disturbance in the Force." It still felt weird saying that. He wasn't Obi-Wan, or Master Yoda. Even after all this time, it still sounded like a script for someone else's lines.

Rey was yawning when she joined Luke, but she brought two cups of caf that she'd grabbed hurriedly on her way over. She handed one to Luke, took a sip of her own, wrinkled her nose, and switched their cups. It could hardly be called caf by the time she had added enough sugar for Luke’s liking...

"How bad?" she asked, noting from Luke's voice that it was Disturbance-with-a-capital-D.

Luke smiled at the caf, and sipped it with a smile. Just right. "Sit down, please," he said. "The cushions are there for a reason." He grinned and plopped down onto his favorite meditating cushion, using the Force to keep his drink from sloshing, because why not.

"All right, well. I don't get Force Visions quite as clearly as you apparently do, but I think you need to go to a planet called Malagarr. It came up on the First Order star charts we recently recovered and—" Luke suddenly laughed. "It is hard to come up with a synonym for 'disturbance' that's anywhere near as accurate. Malagarr. I sense a disturbance there. _Super_ helpful, I know.”

Rey smiled: at least he admitted it.

“The problem is, my sister needs me to go on a mission with _her_ —I hope it's scouting and not diplomatic, but Chewie’s conveniently gone back to see his family on Kashyyyk, so I'm guessing diplomatic." Luke took a deep breath. "And Malagarr is in Wild Space—not anywhere near Mortis, fortunately or unfortunately. So I hope that there the Force will give you answers."

"Okay—so am I supposed to go solo? Because I’m not going to," she said. “If I can.” They'd been talking the other day—Poe with his head in her lap and Finn with his head on Poe's leg after a "picnic" on the observation deck—and Rey had remarked that she wasn't sure she liked the idea of any of them going on any missions without the others as backup, if they could. She would much rather face danger with them, or even with the other pilots or ground troops, than all alone—because she had people to come home to, now. Finn and Poe had agreed.

"You don't need to go alone, unless you want to. I won't be there, but you're free to take Poe and Finn. Think of it as your first _sanctioned_ solo mission..." Luke said with a grin.

Rey rolled her eyes. He was never going to let that go…

"Just make sure you ask Leia. We don't want a repeat of what happened last time." Luke lowered his voice: "She's the evil twin."

...

"General, may I speak to you for a moment?"

"Come in, Dameron. Unless it's for a favor, then get out. Already it looks like favoritism..."

Poe pretended to be scandalized. " _General_ , I'll have you know I'm a happily engaged man and I would _never_..."

But Leia wasn't in the mood for Poe's flirting today, and Poe could see that through the tired glare. "Uh, so Rey's going on a Jedi mission, and Finn and I were wondering—well, Rey was wondering, really—"

"Permission denied. I have a mission for you and Finn." She hit a button on her desk and the holo screen lit up between them. "Thanks to the information we've been able to glean from the _Vapor_ 's link to First Order resources, we may have a real lead on the stormtrooper cloning technology, if it’s real. It may be a processing station for kidnapped children, we’re not really sure."

Poe studied the mission briefing above him with a deep frown. "I should get Finn in here."

"If he's skulking outside, yes," Leia said, like she was trying to pretend to sound stern.

Poe grinned and ducked out the door, waving Finn into the room.

"Major," she said as Finn entered and stood at attention. "I would like you to go with the Commander on this mission, as stormtrooper recovery is...a strong possibility, here. We have rumor of the First Order cloning technology, possibly even a facility, being in Wild Space near Mon Calamari. The mission is meant to be recon only, since we don't know exactly what you'll find.” Leia addressed this to Finn: “How do you feel about leaving the troopers we already have here without you? Do you feel the need to stay?" she asked evenly.

"Between Jess and Deeks, especially with Sevens helping, they'll be fine without me for awhile," Finn answered. He would do more good with any potentially new stormtroopers, if they found them, than he would with the ones already here. He wasn't sure what was going on with Sevens and Jess, except some sort of strange flirting, but it seemed to help Jess's rapport with the troopers more than hurt it, so he tried not to question it too thoroughly. And anyway, it was unlikely that all hell would break loose merely because he was absent for— "Do we have any idea how long this mission will take? I should inform Captain Pava, since she'll be covering for me."

Leia sighed. "Indefinite. We know only the region of space—"

"Wild space," Poe added, frowning in concentration, already plotting search patterns in his head. “Super.”

"Yes. So it could be days or weeks. Base could contact you in case of emergency, of course."

"If it becomes months, I may worry, but I think as long as Jess knows and is prepared, there shouldn't be any problem. They're mostly settled into routines now, and Dr. Kalonia has that assistant now—the psychologist one—”

“Tamo Lan,” Poe supplied.

“Yeah, and she’s been making headway with some of the more difficult problems." Leia raised her eyebrows at that one, and Finn bit off a sigh, knowing what was coming next.

"Even Timons?" she asked.

Timons seemed to be having the most difficulty in settling in, of all the stormtroopers. The former bridge tech was jumpy, in a way rivaled only by Sevens on a bad day, and acted as if she was constantly one quick movement away from hiding under the nearest table or throwing a punch. Dr. Kalonia said she was not surprised, and warned them that they'd probably get ex-stormtroopers with the same (or worse) problems, because the First Order was probably a breeding ground for post-traumatic stress. But for now...

"Timons excepted. But honestly, me being here doesn't seem to help or hurt her situation. The only people she really talks to are Sevens or Dr. Kalonia," Finn said with an unhappy shrug. He felt a little like they were failing her, but they were doing what they could, for now.

Poe smiled at Finn from where he stood behind him, a little bit sad but mostly proud. Finn's tactical brilliance was outmatched only by his kindness and caring for individuals, something that so many commanders lacked. He nudged Finn's shoulder to share his encouraging smile.

"Well, she has been an invaluable asset in cracking the First Order's holonetworks." Leia said. "I can tell Harter to keep a special eye on her." Leia sighed. "And I heard that Luke's sending Rey on a mission, too? Having us all away from base like this is just asking for trouble," she sighed.

"Yeah, I mean, you're leaving _Ackbar_ in charge, pff," Poe said, wildly sarcastic, of course, because Admiral Ackbar was a genius and also beloved by everyone.

"Do you know where she's going?" Leia asked.

"Malagarr? Something like that. It's in Wild Space, too," Finn answered and shrugged one shoulder. "Luke sensed a disturbance in the Force." That was really all the explanation Rey had given them. "If they're in the same direction, can we travel together for part of this?" he asked, trying not to sound like some sort of desperately attached fiancé and probably failing entirely. He couldn't help it—she had asked if they could go with her, and he had trouble denying Poe or Rey anything.

Poe snorted. "What, _Malagarr_?" Poe exclaimed, magnifying the map on her desk. He laughed. "Finn, look!"

Leia sighed and all but rolled her eyes. "I think you can travel together for more than part of it," she said.

Poe clapped Finn on the back. "Okay, this is officially going to be an _awesome_ —I mean, serious, deeply serious, solemn, _important_ mission," Poe added, for Leia's benefit.

She wasn't fooled, but she did smile. "All right. Here's the full mission briefing. Let me know if you have any questions. If you'll excuse me, I need to introduce my brother to this lovely new invention they came up with since he went away called a _shaving razor_...."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning for "sexual assault is normalized in the First Order" and discussions thereof.

"You're going to be gone _how_ long?" Jess asked when Finn had gone to talk to her, and the conversation proceeded downhill from there.

"Could be days, could be weeks. The General has no problem with you taking temporary command of the unit," Finn said, perplexed as to why Jess was reacting this way.

"Weeks?" she asked faintly, and he nodded. "What if I…can't?" she asked, and Finn began to grow alarmed.

"I...don't know? I guess it would be up to Deeks, maybe Sevens if they'd help. Are you concerned you can't maintain command? Honestly, I think they like you the best—better than me. Sevens respects you and likes you, and the others tend to follow their lead...and Timons doesn’t seem as afraid of you…" he trailed off, because Jess was doing something he'd never seen her do: she was freaking out. And he had no clue whatsoever why.

" _Finn_ ," Jess said, pacing wildly—pilots couldn't stand still and freak out ever, apparently— "We have a problem. I was going to tell you, I swear, and this is a shitty time, I know, and please don't tell Poe but—I—I kind of might have this...crush on Sevens? Full disclosure. And I know that's not appropriate," she added hastily. "Like, seriously not appropriate. So I definitely shouldn't be in charge. You should take me off the task force, or something."

"You mean that flirting thing you two have been doing was _actual_ flirting?" Finn asked, trying not to laugh. Jess whirled back around and stomped toward him, and he backed up several steps.

"This is not _funny_ , Finnegan," she snarled, and resumed pacing.

"No, of course not. I'm sorry, I was just surprised." He watched her pace for a moment. Maybe it was time for their youngest ex-stormtrooper to get a chance at command. "Okay. Okay, what if I put Deeks in charge, but have him work with you? He's been with us long enough i think he wouldn't do anything truly stupid. If any orders need to be given, he could give them, and you wouldn’t have authority anymore, but you would be there to advise him. It's not that I don't trust him, but he's young and inexperienced and tends to lead with his heart." Which was not necessarily a bad thing, with the other ex-stormtroopers, but if anything serious happened, Finn didn't want him to be solely responsible.

Jessika groaned. "I don't want to take orders from the _kid_ ," she whined, but sighed. "But that's fine." She blinked up at her friend. "Don't be gone long? I have to take orders from Snap, too, while Poe's gone. My life is going to be _hell_ , Finn."

"Ah come on, it'll be good for you! Teach you humility or something," Finn said with a sympathetic smile. He put an arm over Jess's shoulder and she let out a long sigh.

"I hate you," she grumbled, but leaned into the hug for a second against him before straightening. "Deeks is going to be insufferable, isn't he?"

Finn laughed and shrugged. "No, worse—he’s going to be _so excited_."

"Oh gods."

"Whatever, you like it. "

"Finn. SO. EXCITED. Alright, let's go talk to him. Force save me..." Jess glared darkly, but followed Finn.

Deeks was, predictably, in the gym, showing Tova and Nova how to play boloball with some of the other pilots and infantry.

"Deeks!" Jess called, beckoning him to the sidelines. But she looked to Finn helplessly, unable to actually say this out loud. It was mortifying.

When Finn explained that Deeks would be in charge of the SRTF (no one said or typed “Stormtrooper Recovery Task Force” anymore, it took too damn long) and have jurisdiction over the stormtroopers while Finn was gone, Deeks beamed at Jess.

"You're doing this because you trust me, aren't you? And it's the next step in my training!"

"Er, not, actually...I mean, _yes_ , absolutely, kid," Jessika said. "You are gonna do great!"

"You're still going to call me kid?" Deeks asked, and Jess grinned.

"Deeks, I'm going to call you kid when you're 50 and an admiral."

Deeks made a 'pffffft' sound and pretended to look annoyed.

"Okay—Deeks, you have jurisdiction over the troopers, but not over Jess. She's going to help if you need it," Finn told him, and Deeks looked sideways at Jess.

"Okay!" he said after a moment, breaking into a sunny grin. _Thank all the gods for Deeks_ , Finn thought. "You want to play boloball with us? Tova’s really good! I was telling her about the boloball game you guys played against Finn's troops, but I don't know exactly how it went..." Finn smiled at Jess as she let Deeks lead her over to the game, still chattering, and turned to go find the General and tell her the new plan.

"So why didn't he put you in charge?" Deeks whispered as Finn left the gym, but the young stormtrooper quickly appeared to regret his question. "I mean—oh, kriff. Was that rude? I’m sorry! I just thought—"

Jess rolled her eyes. "It would be rude to anyone but me. But if I score more goals than you, I don't have to tell you why. Deal?"

Their final count was 3-2, and Deeks, to his credit, didn’t ask again.

...

"Major," Sevens said, standing at attention outside the door to the room Finn shared with Commander Dameron and the Jedi Rey. Sevens didn't like bothering him here, but they had a delicate question to ask. They were glad that Poe and Rey weren't around at the moment. "Sir, could I speak to you for a moment?"

Finn looked up in surprise from where he was half-heartedly packing and saw Sevens, of all people, in the doorway. "Sevens, hey. Hi. Um—at ease," he said, fumbling.

"Er...I wanted to know—um," Sevens began, and then belatedly stepped their feet apart and clasped their hands behind their back. But Finn's stance was far more...casual, so they attempted to adjust their posture again. It was difficult. "I wanted to...ask, if you can tell me, if it's all right, why Captain Pava is not going to be our commander when you are gone. I don't want to undermine or question your authority, or Deeks' abilities. I just wish to understand. I thought Captain Pava outranked him. Is this a Resistance thing?"

Finn blinked, trying to decide how Jess would want him to handle this. On the one hand, he could just spill it right now. On the other, it was possible there was a reason Jess was keeping it to herself that didn't include 'Jessika Pava is actually a chicken who is afraid the person who has been flirting with her doesn't actually like her.’ Finn thought it was unlikely that Sevens was simply acting as they thought they should—flirting was not something that existed in the stormtrooper world—so they probably were genuinely attracted to one another. "Answer one question for me, first, and then I promise I will answer yours. Is there a particular reason this concerns you, or are you merely curious as to how the Resistance works?" he asked, hoping this might give him something to go on.

Sevens shifted, and glanced down, their blush answering Finn's question almost before they spoke. "Personal reasons, sir. I—well, I like her, you know. I'm concerned she's not getting a command she deserves." Sevens glanced at Finn warily, gauging his reaction. "I want her to do well. She—is very kind." They smiled.

Finn smiled softly, glancing over at one of the pictures of himself, Rey, and Poe that sat on the chest of drawers. "Will it help you if I tell you that this was her decision, and not mine? I believe Captain Pava is concerned that there may be a...conflict of interest, we'll say, if she is left in command of someone to whom she has formed a little more than the normal attachment of one soldier to another." He paused to see if Sevens would realize what he was saying, or if he would have to be less subtle.

"An attachment?" Sevens repeated. “To me?” A strange feeling fluttered through them, and they couldn't help but smile. Their face felt warm. "I mean—me, too. I never expected to _like_ an officer—I mean, you're all right, sir, but you seem pretty well settled, so." They pressed their lips together. "I mean, to like an officer like _that_. And it doesn't answer why she's not in command. She was offered a position, but didn't take it?"

"Yes. She was initially supposed to be in command while I am gone, but when I asked her, she didn't want the position." He was quiet for a moment, letting this sink in, before he continued. "Sevens, here... It's different than where we came from. Officers are not allowed to enter into relationships with those they command. And I think Jess worries that you view her as a superior, and she doesn't want to take advantage of you on accident." It was truly a blessing that none of this had been a problem between him and Poe. It would've taken years for Finn to do or say anything, much less Poe, if he had known...

Sevens narrowed their eyes at Finn.

Then they laughed, barking in his face. "Good one, sir! I didn't know you were so funny! Sorry," they said, still giggling. "I just, you had me going for a second. No, you can tell Captain Pava I'd be honored if she 'took advantage.'" They added air quotes to the strange phrase. Sevens had been with enough officers to know that they would vastly prefer Jessika, if she'd have them. Take advantage, indeed!

Finn winced and scrubbed a hand over his hair in distress he was trying not to show. He was not qualified for this conversation, but they were going to have it. "Okay. Go back to the beginning of everything you just said. I am _not_ kidding, at all. I know...some things were common in the First Order, between the officers and those in their command, but that's forbidden here. It's wrong, Sevens—” And now he was thinking about what they did to Slip, because he was ‘pretty,’ apparently, and now Finn was getting angry. “It’s so incredibly wrong. You can't use your power over others that way—you absolutely can't." He wasn't sure how to be any more clear about this, or any more serious. "If you and Jess want to act on how you feel about each other, it has to be on equal footing, and that can't be true if Jess is even marginally in command of you and the other stormtroopers." He stepped a little closer and looked—up, almost, because Sevens was almost disconcertingly tall, especially in the boots they were wearing. He searched for some sort of understanding in their eyes that hadn't been there previously. "It's important here. I know it isn't what you're used to, but it's important to Jess and to Poe and to everyone in the Resistance. There's this thing called consent—I’ll give you reading materials Poe gave me, it explains it far better than I can, and then you'll have it to reference. But try to understand it."

Sevens drew back, concerned, and slightly offended. "Sir, I know what consent is." They weren't stupid, and they weren't weak. How _else_ did people get out of bad rotations? "Are you saying Captain Pava likes me...but we couldn't do anything if she were my CO?" This was confusing.

"I'm saying even if it wasn't a serious ethical problem, she wouldn't want to, because she'd be afraid you weren't both on the same page about why you were in the relationship." He was struggling to explain this. Sure, the First Order has a _version_ of consent, but it was so twisted and mangled that Finn wasn't even sure it was a good starting point. "Okay. Think about it this way. In the First Order, you'd consent to these kinds of relationships to get something or to prevent something or to keep your superior happy, right?" Sevens nodded hesitantly, clearly not yet seeing where this was going. "And that was sort of consent because usually you had a choice if you wanted to do it or not." Sevens nodded again, but impatiently, like they were becoming annoyed with the simple way Finn was explaining this. He soldiered on. "Here, consent means you're doing something because you just...want to, for its own sake. Something about it is rewarding, even though you don't get anything really tangible from it like keeping a position or not getting more severely disciplined." He paused to see if this made more sense. “You shouldn’t be worried about those things _anyway_ , here.”

Sevens pressed their lips together. "Yeah, I mean, yeah, I get that. I want to have that with Jessika because I want to." They waited. "I mean it." Sevens shifted, considering all that Finn had said. "I guess, if I could get promoted without having to suck anyone's cock that would be ideal," they ventured, trying to wrap their mind around this. Fraternizing or even thinking about sex as an enjoyable activity had always been forbidden, but it was used for favors, and that could sometimes be enjoyable. Sevens was confident Captain Pava would be enjoyable. An idea struck Sevens. "Uh. Permission to speak freely, sir?"

"Granted," Finn said, looking worried about what he was granting.

"Someone should tell Timons this. She...had a good position, you know. In the Order. And I don't think she liked it." Sevens hoped they didn't have to say more.

Finn was confused at first about what Sevens was saying, but when it occurred to him, he growled so ferociously that Sevens took a step back as if alarmed. He held up a hand and smiled at them. "Sorry. That wasn't directed at you. Sometimes I find all new reasons to hate the First Order." He would probably have to talk to Kalonia about this, in case she didn't already know. And, as Sevens suggested, to Timons, whose tendency to act like a frightened bird around him and freeze up around people—mostly male humanoids—now made perfect, tragic sense. Maybe she’d do better hearing it from Dr. Kalonia.

"Sir?" Sevens asked, and Finn realized he'd been deep in thought.

"Sorry—just thinking. Thank you for your input... I'm not sure I'd have realized her problem without your help. Is there anything else?" he asked them.

Sevens didn't like how they had upset Finn so badly with something they thought he would already be pretty well aware of—but he had been in the Resistance a long time now, so maybe he had forgotten, or maybe his squad commanders had been different than theirs, or maybe he really _had_ never taken part in any of that (and had the _option_ to), and that was why he always had rotations in sanitation and other awful jobs.

"Er, no. Thank you, sir." They paused, wondering if they would have to have this awkward conversation with Dr. Kalonia, who was nice enough, but didn't _understand_ the way Finn did. Though, apparently, Finn didn't understand, either. Not really. "Could I ask you to not say anything to Captain Pava? I—don’t want to upset her or scare her off before I have this relationship thing figured out."

"Of course—I won't say anything to anyone unless you ask me to. I would say find me if you need to, but I guess I won't be here..." he gestured to the bed where his things lay half packed. "But I'm confident you can all handle it." And if they couldn't, he had no doubt he'd get a message from the General, or possibly Deeks or Jess.

"Um," he said awkwardly, not sure how to dismiss Sevens without being obvious about it. "Oh! Here, I have something that might help you—you don't have to read any of them if you don't want to, but it's what Poe gave me early on." He went over and dug through a pile of papers and miscellaneous single socks and odds and ends on the floor until he unearthed a holopad. When he handed it to Sevens, they gave him a look of one raised eyebrow. "They're books on... Relationships, mostly. The friend kind and the romantic kind and kinds I didn't even know existed. Share them, if you think they'll help the others too. I'll leave it to your discretion."

Sevens smiled at Finn gratefully, eyes shining. "Thank you, sir." They began to look through the handful of titles. "What's this one?"

"Oh!" Rey said, arriving suddenly and slamming her hand over the datapad. "That's a new one we got. Don’t read that one. Or. Read that one last, maybe?"

It was a book on erotic rope bondage.


	3. Chapter 3

With Poe and Rey waiting for him at the top of the ramp, Finn's face was grim as he boarded the Falcon with the last of his packing—a sidearm and an extra med kit, because Finn knew with whom he was traveling. Poe tried smiling at him. "Credit for your thoughts?"

"He's worried we'll get ourselves into trouble again," Rey said, sounding a bit bemused. "Or that the stormtroopers will while he's gone."

"I'm worried about Timons. Just the usual First Order banthashit." Finn sounded annoyed, even to his own ears, and took a deep breath. "I'll handle it when we get back, though. We all set?" he asked.

Poe and Rey nodded, Rey shutting the doors and folding Finn into a hug with Poe slotting behind him to hug them both. "We're all set," Poe answered.

"Whatever it is, we'll make sure the First Order pays for it," Rey promised, now absolutely serious.

Poe kissed the back of Finn's neck. "Hey, Finno, do me a favor? Give Rey a nice big squeeze for me," he said. “Don’t let go.”

As Rey shouted, "Hey wait no!" Poe laughed and was suddenly gone, racing to the cockpit and launching himself into the pilot's seat while Rey was still disentangling herself from Finn.

"No fair! No fair!" Rey shrieked, following after him. "Poe, that's cheating!" she said, plopping down in the copilot's seat and punching him in the arm—hard.

Poe groaned and clutched at his arm dramatically.

"If you two can't agree, I'll just have to fly I guess," Finn said, and received twin looks of disbelief (or possibly concern). Poe looked about to make an 'Okay, Dad,' crack when Finn said, "I'm kidding. But really, we should go." He went to the chair behind Rey's and sat, looking at them expectantly.

Poe began flicking through preflight checks while Rey nagged him, and it was familiar and comfortable and they only played it up a little bit so Finn would laugh and tell them to knock it off. They had already decided that Poe would handle the piloting through Wild Space, though who was in charge of takeoff and hyperspace was still up in the air until Rey decided to be the bigger woman and give her fiancé the chance to do what he loved.

She earned a kiss for that. "All right, ladies and gents—" Poe began, settling back into the pilot's chair and easing back on the yoke, propelling them into the air.

[And droids!] BB-8 was happy to remind their human.

"—And droids. We're outta here!"

Finn smiled when they were out of the hangar and Rey, having decided she'd been still long enough, unbuckled and stood. She looked back at him and then draped across his lap, legs hanging over the arm of the chair as Finn giggled helplessly. "You're going to distract the pilot!" he laughed, and she silenced him with a kiss before going back up and leaning over Poe's seat to look out the window.

"Oh no, by all means go back to distracting the pilot," Poe said, glancing back at them with a warm smile, but he turned back to the console as a small alarm went off. "Hey, hey, what the kriff! Our landing gear isn't coming up?"

"Oh, _sorry_ ," Rey said, pretending to sound ditzy (a habit she had picked up from Poe), "I forgot to mention, you have to do them one at a time so they don't get fussy..."

"REY!" the boys shouted together, and Poe, feeling like his fly was down since they were still in view of the base, dropped all the landing struts before bringing them up one by one, which worked.

"You and the _Falcon_ are conspiring against me," Poe accused as Rey went back to kissing Finn.

She giggled. "We are two beautiful, finicky ladies who just need to be treated right."

"You did that on purpose!" Finn said, laughing again, and he just loved these two wonderful people so much his heart felt full. He kissed Rey again, on the cheek this time, and she got her arms around him to tickle his ribs, nearly sending them both cackling to the floor. By the time their impromptu tickle war was over, Poe had cleared atmo and made the jump to hyperspace.

"Are we safe to run on auto, BB-8?" Rey asked the little droid. She was also trying to flatten her hair, but if Finn's fondly amused look was anything to go by, it wasn't working. She stopped.

[Affirmative!] BB-8 chirped back, and Rey bolted to her feet in excitement.

"Come on! I have something to show you!" she announced, not even waiting for them before she sauntered off further into the ship.

She had spent no small amount of time in the galley while traveling with Luke. He was, shockingly, a passable cook. Chewie, who knew the galley well enough to hate it, was even better at cooking—as long as you only wanted meat. But he refused to use the galley because, he said, it had nothing he needed and everything he didn't, and there was no room to actually prepare food (especially for him). Thinking to give Chewie somewhere to cook, her something to do, and her boys somewhere that they could all be in the same place (ish) while food was cooking, she'd undertaken the task of renovating the galley to resemble a kitchen, with a window looking over a bar with barstools for eating at on the other side. She had taken things out and put things in and rearranged almost all of it so they had actual counter space. There were cooking and baking ingredients in the cabinets and a small fridge kept their perishables cool.

Poe stopped at the entrance to the galley. "Oh my gods," he said, and laughed and wobbled, almost weak-kneed. "Rey! This is amaze—did you really put a—" He couldn't finish a sentence but Rey had put in a small electric stove and oven, and instead of rations lining the reconstituter (though there were those, too, still), there was _real food_! "Rey!" he exclaimed again, and she giggled.

"This is a very selfish gift, you realize. I much prefer homecooked meals to ration packs. So get cooking!" she said, and laughing, smacked Poe on the ass.

He darted within with a yelp to explore the galley, and sure it was cozy, but it was well-stocked. Where had she gotten the _stove?_ And bakeware small enough to fit in the oven? Poe imagined her scavenging a junk yard for all of this, spending hours cleaning it up—sure it was a “selfish” gift for Rey, except Poe knew that he, Luke, and Chewie enjoyed cooking. This was a pure and selfless gift.

"Darling," Poe said, and swept her into a kiss.

"You mean you'll really cook us dinner?" Rey asked. “I was only joking. I didn’t mean to say you _belonged_ in the kitchen.”

Poe snorted. “Sweetheart, I know my place," he said, taking her hand gallantly and kissing it. "With two beautiful warrior-spouses, my place is absolutely in the kitchen and, when you let me, in the cockpit.”

She nuzzled against his shoulder while he hugged her, and apparently Finn felt left out, because he slotted behind her and wrapped his arms around them both.

"Do you have a fire extinguisher? Not that Poe needs it, unless we help..." Finn said.

Poe laughed, and Rey wriggled out from between them to demonstrate the fire safety protocols. "Looks great!" Poe said, now exploring in earnest. "Ooh, and you added things to Han's drinks cabinet?" It was sad to see the few bottles of whiskey that the old man would never get to finish.

"I put R2 in charge of that, since according to him I have 'no fucking clue' how to stock a drinks cabinet."

Poe laughed. "Great! you two start making some cocktails, and I'll start dinner."

"What is all of this stuff?" Finn asked as Poe got out several of the bottles in the drinks cabinet and set them on the bar, where he had slid onto a stool. He grinned at Poe through the space over the bar, feeling close but not in his way. The bottles were brightly colored and smelled a little odd—like fruit and alcohol mixed together. It made him sneeze and he handed them over to Rey, who was laughing at him.

Poe reached across and put the bottles into two groups. "These are liquors, these are mixers. Did R2 not give you guys any recipes?" Poe slid a datapad to them. "Look some up, or have fun."

Rey, remembering the pancakes episode, dutifully looked up some recipes, starting with "sweet and fruity cocktails." She was pointing one out to Finn when, behind them, Poe yelped.

"Whoa, is the stove supposed to spark like that?!"

"Oh, don't use that hob, sorry," Rey laughed.

"Kriff, Rey, any other hazards I should avoid?" he laughed.

"Mmmm, not that I can think of. The oven is kind of unreliable... Sometimes it has one or two temperatures, and sometimes it has all of them. Usually it has both." She grinned, because this was just part of its charm, she'd decided early on.

"Can we make this one?" Finn asked suddenly, having found a recipe that seemed to use at least five different liquors and mixers, all of them either sweet or fruity. The picture of the drink was bright blue, and he wanted to know what bright blue tasted like.

Rey squealed and returned her attention to Finn and the cocktail glasses while Poe squared up to the stove. "Okay, baby, you're nice to me, I'm nice to you. I'll be nice to you, anyway, so Rey won't gut me and Solo won't haunt me, but you could give me a break." This time, the stove didn't seem to explode, and he heated the pan and added oil, onions, and other vegetables to stir fry while he boiled rice. "This is a pretty good setup, Rey," he said, cooking chicken in a third pan. "Thank you. How are cocktails coming?"

"They are blue!" Rey reported.

"The same blue as the recipe, no less!" Finn added. He tasted his and shot Rey a suspicious look. "Are you sure you put alcohol in this?" he asked her.

"Pretty sure. Yeah, look, they're open," she said and took the drink from Finn. "Oh. That's dangerous, you can't even taste it..." She grinned and ran around the bar into the kitchen space. "Hey taste this!" she chirped, getting in Poe's way and holding up the glass.

"But...but I _liked_ that one... I was going to drink it," Finn said pathetically, sounding somewhat aggrieved.

"Hush. You don't get to whine and beg until later," Rey told him.

"But—ah, pardon?" Finn asked, because the joke had surprised him. "Rey!" he laughed.

Poe laughed, waggling his eyebrows at Finn as his sipped the drink. "Ugh! You give me syrup. Finn can drink that, make me a different one. Liquor and soda for me. Maybe a squeeze of citrus."

"Ooh here's one with lots of different liquors. it's called an iced tea?" Rey looked to Poe, who laughed.

"Yeah, that one should be okay."

"Finn, will you reach me a new glass?"

"Hang on Finno, this is hot—" Poe said as Finn tried to move past him, for it was still a small galley, a tight fit when they needed to be in the space together.

Rey giggled at Finn, her smile wide and toothy. "Okay. We need units of all of these," she explained, pushing four bottles over.

Finn retrieved his drink and an empty glass for Rey, as well as a kiss from Poe (just because) and retreated to safety next to Rey. "Okay, does this actually have any tea in it? Because it looks an awful lot like it doesn't..." he said as he measured out what Rey had handed him. "Also if we're all drunk, who's going to drive?" There was a soft twitter over the ship's com and Finn smiled. "You're a sneaky little eavesdropper, Bee! But you're good even if something unexpected happens?" he asked the air, since apparently BB-8 was listening in.

"Nothing's going to _happen_ ," Poe said, leaning across the bar to try to kiss the worry off Finn's face. "We're in hyperspace through so much of this trip we aren't in any place to even be in danger."

Rey laughed and covered her ears. "Ah! You'll jinx us!" she laughed, and "accidentally" poured a double shot of something into the glass.

"I mean, Wild Space is a different story, but Bee can handle us until then. Just a few easy jumps and re-calibrations," Poe corrected, and BB-8's burbles from the cockpit sounded suspiciously like [If you have jinxed us, I am finding a new pilot].

Poe laughed and grinned at Finn. "I think it's sweet that you worry about us so much. It shows you care, and, you know, that you don't trust us," he added, teasing, and went back to his stir fry.

When Poe wasn't looking, Finn added another shot of the liquid he was pouring into the glass in retaliation, and now all there was room for was a mere spoonful of soda and a squeeze of lemon.

"Tell me how successful we have been in avoiding injury on these little excursions, and then tell me I worry too much," Finn grumbled as he handed Poe the drink and watched his face to see how it tasted. He half-expected Poe to spit it out, saying it tasted like turpentine, which was what Finn thought it tasted like, but Poe took a distracted sip and nodded.

"Oh come on, no one has died," Rey said, and Finn was about to be annoyed, except when he turned around, he realized she'd been joking. "I admit, probably because you were there to take care of things. But I'm not the one who nearly died because I jumped out of a transport and tried to take out the First Order all on my own."

"That was _once_!"

"...Uh huh, and your point is?" Rey asked.

"You're being unfair," Finn told her, and she kissed him on the nose.

"Only because I love you. Drink your drink." Finn took a sullen sip of his drink, heaving a melodramatic sigh just to make Rey (and Poe, who'd been watching and smiling) laugh.

Poe cackled and looked at his drink for the first time. It looked the right color, and since the first taste was promising, and he was thirsty, he took a larger gulp. "We're going to be fine. This is strictly recon. No big. You know, just like Jakku was supposed to be." He winked and returned to his cooking, drink in hand.

"Okay, buddies, food's almost done," he said after a moment. "Rey, where do you keep the bowls? Also, this is a _really_ good Corellian Iced Tea. Who wants to make me another?" Because this one was almost done.

“Oh my gods, Poe!” Finn cried, looking nervously between the bottles of liquor and Poe’s empty glass.

Rey looked between Finn and Poe. "Wait, _you_ spiked his drink, too?" Rey yelped, and then laughed. "Poe, darling, you just drank like, six shots. How did you do that?"

Poe paled, and then flushed. "I was thirsty!" he said in his defense. "Are you trying to kill me? Alcohol counts as double in space!" They always warned you in the Academy that drinking in space got you drunk quicker, like drinking at a high altitude when planetside. But he laughed. "Okay, let's get eating before I start—don’t let me drink any more. Except water." Poe filled a cup with water and drained it in one go.

"Well!" he said, pointing at their glasses, since they were staring at him wide-eyed, like he might explode or something. "You guys better start catching up or this won't be any fun for you." Poe tapped his com. "Bee, I want you to ignore my vitals for the next few hours."

[Not again. You're not as young as you used to be] BB-8 scolded.

"It's not my fault!"

"Should one of us stay just a little sober?" Finn asked, although it didn't have much effect since he promptly took a sip of his own drink. Rey jostled his shoulder.

"As long as we're sober enough to make sure Poe doesn't fall asleep on his back, I think we'll be fine," she said. "Also, no more cooking, so finish now or finish in the morning when we all have hangovers."

From the coms, BB-8 hooted mournfully, like they were already dreading the repercussions of this.

"Hey, Bee, we'll be fine. I promise! I won't let them get _very_ drunk," Finn promised.

They whistled something back that sounded like nothing so much as [?????] with just a little bit of judgment. Rey guessed she deserved it, since she was half-responsible for whatever state Poe ended up in. Finn, too, since she'd mixed his drink as well. She almost wondered if she should feel bad, but then Poe blew her a kiss and Finn threw his arm over her shoulder and she laughed. No, she definitely didn't feel bad about this, not even a little.

“Hey, I’m fine. We’re good, I got this,” Poe insisted brightly, and sure things were a bit blurry and would in a few minutes either be two tons of fun or no fun at all, but he could even dish out their supper into three separate bowls without making a mess. “We are all… _good_ …” he added, feeling very loose.

Rey and Finn giggled and relieved him of their bowls and guided him to the holochess table. Rey went to fetch more water, and Finn made sure the stove was off.

“I was going to get that,” Poe insisted again.

They ate quickly and quietly, pressed into each other’s space, Poe just as interested in gulping down his food as Finn and Rey, in the hopes that it would soak up the effectively _twelve shots_ of hard liquor he had just ingested (really, it wasn’t their fault, why he thought drinking four shots while in hyperspace where they counted as eight _that_ quickly in the first place was a good idea, he’d never know). However, it was around this point that he began to feel easy and invincible, and he saw it approaching with a kind of resigned alarm, but he was told he was a very amenable drunk—his usual gregariousness and love of his fellow man was just magnified—so he wasn’t too worried. Anyway his affianced ought to see their idiot future husband _really_ piss-drunk to make sure they still wanted him ‘for better or worse.’

“Wanna play a game?” Poe suddenly asked, suddenly twenty-three again, suddenly awake and eager just to have _fun_ with his two most favorite people in the world. “Chess, or sabacc?” He waggled his eyebrows. “Strip sabacc?” he teased. “We’ve got the whole ship to ourselves.”

Rey laughed. “Sure. Maybe when Finn loses we can chase him around the _Falcon_ , too?” she said, though she was also confident no one was sober enough to play that particular game at all safely.

Poe grinned wickedly. “I like the way you think, lady.”

To Rey, Poe seemed surprisingly lucid still. More excitable than usual, maybe, but that was a sliding scale with Poe Dameron stone cold sober, anyway—and he wasn’t slurring or too uncoordinated yet. She glanced at Finn, whose drink was finished and who was, in contrast, a giggly drunk, unable to stop smiling his beautiful bright smile as he looked back and forth between them, but calm otherwise. Poe was all motion while Finn seemed mildly concerned that the world was threatening to tip over on him. And they—all three of them—couldn’t keep their hands off each other.

Rey was—well. She hadn’t decided what kind of drunk she was going to be. She took their bowls to the kitchen and, when the boys weren’t looking, downed another shot. (Maybe it took more alcohol to get Force-users drunk? That sounded like a thing.)

Poe appeared suddenly with cards, and shuffled them with such accuracy that Rey and Finn were suitably impressed and solidly worried. "Wait, but Jess said you're terrible at sabacc," Rey said.

"Not true," Poe said (it was totally true), and he dealt a hand. "Okay, we need to all start off with the same number of clothes," he explained, and—this was wear the drunkenness showed—they took about twenty standard minutes to count what they were wearing. "Jewelry doesn't count."

"Hair ties?"

"No."

In the end, Poe had to go find a scarf to wear to even the playing field, and he immediately proceeded to lose every hand to Rey and Finn.

"I'm freezing," Poe complained, once he was down to trousers, underwear, and one sock. He tried cuddling up to Finn.

"Watch out, he'll try to see your cards!" Rey warned.

"He's lost every hand, I don't think it would matter at this point," Finn remarked. He was having trouble remembering what he'd been about to do, anyway.

"Play that one," Poe told him as he snuggled up close, so Finn did. He promptly lost the hand—not to Poe, but to Rey. Poe didn't even play a card, which Rey and Finn both pretended not to notice.

Finn lost several more hands until he was essentially tied with Poe. "I think she's hustling us," Poe said in a loud whisper, and Rey cackled (and won three more hands). At some point Finn decided that this was statistically unlikely, probably, and went very still and quiet, watching Rey like a hawk. The next hand, he blinked as a card that hadn't been in her hand appeared from up one of her sleeves. "Hey! You're cheating!" he yelped, and she laughed so hard she eventually gave up and dropped her cards—it must have been about half the deck at this point—and put her head on the table.

Poe grinned. "Atta girl," he said, "not trying if you're not cheating!" and joined in on the laughter, pulling them both into a tangle of limbs because Rey looked so deliciously smug and superior and Finn looked—well—naked, and _also_ smug, like he might have lost on purpose.

"Hey, cough it up," Poe said suddenly. "You lose. Underwear comes off," Poe said, playfully, even innocently, scrabbling at Finn's underpants. Gods, and there was something sinful about how Finn wore regulation white cotton briefs, like, whoa. Poe had a drawer full of moderately attractive and comfortable black things in silk and nylon and hadn't been caught dead in regulation underwear since he made it out of basic—but, well, Poe knew he didn't compare to Finn in regulation fucking underwear. It wasn't fair that he looked so good in them!

"Okay, you're aware you said all that out loud, right?" Rey said, while Finn was positively choking with laughter.

"I've never felt more aware! Okay, Finn. Five second head start, and when we catch you, we're taking those stupid sexy regulation briefs off you!" Poe declared. "One, two—"

"Three four five!" Rey shouted all at once, just as Finn had barely stood up.

Finn yelped as Rey lunged for him, scrambling to his feet and making it all of two steps before he tripped on the underwear Poe had been trying to drunkenly divest him of. He scrambled free of it and bolted before he could even see if Rey and Poe were still after him, his cackling echoing through the hall behind him.

Poe stood with a lurch, and Rey stood, too, and then they dropped immediately back to their seats.

"Oh no," Rey said, chuckling lowly. "I'm way too drunk for this."

"He's getting away!" Poe said, waving in the direction Finn had gone. "Go after him!"

Rey finally staggered to her feet, and dragged Poe to his feet after her.

"Where did you go? Finn! Oh, gods, I'm too drunk for this," Poe moaned, as they wandered the halls.

"Finnnnnn help we can't chase you if we can't find—oh, there he is!" Rey shrieked, seeing a flash of skin and tearing after him.

It turned out that Finn, too, was too drunk for this. In his haste to escape a second time, he clipped a corner with his shoulder and was thrown off balance. He ended up on the floor groaning and whining and rubbing his poor, assaulted shoulder. "I fell down," he said sadly, "And my shoulder hurts."

"Aha!" Rey cried, pounding down the corridor at Finn, who lay suddenly prone on the floor, with Poe following after. He tried to scramble away, but all they had to do was fall on him, which wasn't a lot of fun, but once they were in a tangle on the floor they were all laughing and tickling each other and didn't care.

"Whoaaaa is BB-8 doing barrel rolls in hyperspace or am I that drunk?" Poe wondered, and laughed at his joke, which wasn't a joke, but Rey and Finn laughed, too.

"Wait, wait, why is Fffinnnnaked. Poe's wearing too many clothes!"

" _You're_ wearing too many clothes!" Poe countered. "Probably," he added, to be fair, because his face was buried against the back of Finn's head with his eyes screwed shut.

"You're both wearing too many clothes," Finn informed them. Rey was trying to figure out her shirt, which should not have been a challenge but somehow had trapped one of her arms and was stuck around her neck. She huffed at him and stopped struggling with it.

"Poe—hey, Poe, Rey is stuck in her shirt. Should we help?" Finn asked, laughing.

"I'm in a tearing clothes off of my significant others mood," Poe purred, crawling on top of Rey and beginning to pull her shirt off, tearing it only slightly. "Only I've forgotten what to do with them once I get them naked." He giggled, and Rey laughed.

"You're _really_ drunk!"

[Can you not do this in a bed?] BB-8 hooted, [I have to roll over that floor!]

Finn, who had the capacity to be concerned even when very drunk, sat up and grabbed at Poe's foot to get his attention. "I bet Rey's bed here is way better than ours," he said.

"So much. 'S amazing. Best bed," Rey agreed. Her voice was kind of oddly muffled behind Poe's shoulder. Realizing this was the case, she stretched up to kiss his chin.

"Better than having sex in Han's bed, like last time," Poe said. "I'm pretty sure he's haunting me. Also I had a dream about Leia afterward." He blushed, suddenly. "I mean—if it helps, you two were there, too? Godsdamnit."

Rey laughed. "No offense, but I'm betting you're not going to manage sex tonight. You can barely manage sitting up."

"I'll have you know, I—yeah okay right now I'm seeing double so I might try to suck Finn's cock and crack my face on the floor." He giggled. "Okay, bed. Bed? Help?"

"There is no help for you, I'm very sorry, and it's very unfortunate," Finn answered. Then he rolled to his feet, sort of, and leaned against the wall. Rey and Poe were still on the floor but looking up at him because he was supposed to be helping them, but he'd become distracted. They were just...perfect. And his. And he loved them so much that he ended up back on the floor where he could pull them both to him for a hug. Apparently he got a little sappy when drunk...

"Could we get up now? Bed? It's very good for cuddling, and BB-8 will be mad about the butt-prints we're leaving on the floor," Rey said, and Finn remembered what he was doing. He stood again and more or less pulled both of his affianced to their feet.

"Nope, this is—hang on, hang on. Just gonna—hold this wall up," Poe giggled. He was still wearing one sock and his underwear, and Rey was still dressed below the waist. They had to fix this. "Whee, okay, bed," he said, glad for Finn's help as they staggered to Rey's tiny cubby of a room.

The bed was even smaller than the one on base, but it was cozy, and they had been prepared to sleep on the floor, so no one was complaining. Also, here, they could snuggle more effectively.

"Oh my gods I love you so much," Poe declared, all of a sudden, when he had his arms wrapped around both of them. "You're strong and gorgeous and smart and—" _And if it weren't for this war I would never get out of bed but would just hold you forever._ He sniffed. "So either I'm going to start crying or I'm going to braid Rey's hair," he said.

"Yes! My hair!" Rey agreed. "And then we use these, right?" Rey said, scrambling up and reaching into her bag to show Poe the actual ink pens he had found on his last scouting mission.

Poe laughed, settling his head on Finn's chest. "We could. I'm not sure it'll look great, with all we've had to drink..."

"We got these to draw on you, Finn," Rey explained, eyes bright, as she tucked her feet under Finn's thigh. "It'll wash off in the refresher, but since you like fingernail scratching we thought you might like if we drew on you. Your arms or back or wherever."

"I have been composing a poem about your ass in regulation cotton briefs," Poe said with a chuckle. "I could write it out on your ass."

Finn pet Poe's hair absently, then shifted so Rey's feet would be warm and he would be comfortable. "I like that idea. Will you teach me to braid Rey's hair first?" he reached out and tangled a few strands over his fingers. "Actually don't, I'll just make knots," he added as he tried to avoid doing just that by the mere act of combing his fingers through Rey's hair.

Poe crossed his eyes with pieces of her hair in his hands. "Not sure _I_ won't, buddy," he said, and laughed, and Rey giggled.

"I think Finn should grow his hair out, so we can play with it, and he knows what it's like," she said. Finn had kept his hair cropped stormtrooper-short, seeing the base barber (who was actually one of the med droids) almost monthly, and only recently "going crazy" and trying out an undercut on the sides.

"He's already got his weakness," Poe said, scratching Finn's arm, making him turn his palm up immediately, which made everyone laugh. "Okay. Hair. We're gonna do this," he said, and proceeded to manage something like a braid down the back of Rey's head (though the technical problems wouldn't become apparent until the morning), showing Finn his work, though Finn was too tipsy to follow along properly.

"Okay, that's enough, Poe," Rey declared loudly, scrambling over Finn so that Finn was in the middle instead. "Grab a pen. And hold very still, Finn. I said hold still!"

"I am holding still!" Finn protested.

"You really are just that drunk, sweetheart," Poe laughed, grabbing an orange pen and Finn's right arm. The ink was thick and bright and shimmered on Finn's warm-dark skin. Poe had a crazy idea to paint him like Black One, but was sure he would run out of orange ink before then, and settled for drawing schematics like the tattoos on his shoulders (though the next morning he would wonder what these schematics were _for_ ).

Once they'd all settled down, Finn held perfectly still, eyes half-closed and completely relaxed as the pens scratched soothingly over his skin. He was going to fall asleep, at this rate, but he couldn't quite bring himself to care. Anyway, the room was spinning too much to really close his eyes for long. "That feels really good," he said softly. He was pretty sure he could feel every stress-taut muscle relaxing into Poe and Rey's occasional touches alongside the pens. And then Rey started drunkenly humming something, and he couldn't tell if it was hilarious or endearing.

Poe laughed when Finn started humming, too, only to realize he was also humming, guiding them into a tune they all knew, and he wished he'd thought to being his quetarra (and maybe he had? But he probably shouldn't handle anything expensive now). Finn had the sweetest smile on his face, his eyes blinking opened and closed slowly, his brow totally smooth.

"Poe? Poe!" Rey had been speaking to him for some time based on her tone. "Help me roll him onto his side so we can do his back."

"Ah, yes, the canvas of the gods," he said, not positive what that meant, but whatever.

"I'm gonna put flowers around your scar, Finn, tell me if it hurts," Rey said, and lingered on the kiss she gave him so long Poe thought she had fallen asleep on his face.

"I'm gonna draw my dick on your butt," Poe said, and laughed.

"Please don't?" Finn whimpered, but didn't seem like he'd actually try to stop him.

"Write your name, maybe?" Rey suggested. "Keep it classy."

"You're face is classy," Poe said. Apparently it was juvenile-drunk stage now. Super.

Finn snorted softly and considered rolling over to prevent Poe from drawing something juvenile on his ass, but it seemed like a lot of effort. And Rey was very gently drawing around his scar, which he so rarely thought about anymore unless one of them touched it or someone mentioned it, though the nerves never had recovered quite right. His back tickled distractingly around the scar and he shifted. "Shhhh—kind of sensitive tonight, huh?" Rey asked.

"Pfff... _you're_ kind of sensitive," he answered, just to shamelessly steal Poe's style.

Poe chuckled, managing to refrain from drawing anything rude on Finn's butt, but continued his designs from before down his thighs. "I wish I could draw flowers like you, Rey. How does desert girl know how to draw flowers and plants and jungle boy only knows how to draw...wait. I'm going to try trees." He tossed the orange pen carelessly on the floor (in the morning he would remember how expensive they were) and reached for the green one.

"Wait, Poe, I'll need that back!" Rey complained, but continued drawing pink and purple flowers instead.

Meanwhile, Poe got two trees, one on each thigh, that were huge and sprawling and looked rather like the Force tree from home. "Is that good, Rey?"

"Yeah, I like that one. Too bad they aren't permanent, Finn, you'd be very handsome," Rey said and added another flower.

"I don't need any help being handsome," he responded with mock vanity, "unlike some people." There was a beat of silence and stillness.

" _Ooooooh_ ," Rey laughed, and nudged Poe with an elbow before dissolving into giggles.

"Yeah, you totally don't—" Poe said dreamily, and then stopped. "Hey wait! Oh my gods, that was so mean!" he cried, and covered his face and buried it between Finn's legs, which was where he wanted to be in the first place frankly.

"Poe you can't sleep there!" Rey laughed.

"I'm very comfy," he protested, rolling to one side and pillowing his head on Finn's thigh. Finn's ass was desperately tempting, and Poe wanted to get his tongue on him or in him, but: "I'm too tired for sex. You have to do it." Ah, the whiny drunk stage.

"Maybe we could just..." Finn suggested. He didn't have an alternative yet, but he'd get there. Eventually. Soon. Really soon. Maybe he could just roll over and grab both of them and snug them underneath him where he could be assured they'd still be there when he decided what else they could do.

Or maybe he could just sleep here. It seemed like the best idea. He managed to move and take one of Poe's hands. "Mmmmm, time to sleep okay good night." He made exaggerated snoring noises that surprised Rey and made her squeak and stop drawing.

"I know what we can do," Rey said, and grabbed Finn's face and kissed him.

Poe giggled, actually enjoying where he was, kind of, because Finn's thighs were heavenly to lay on and Finn and Rey were so cute snuggled up together, kissing, pens forgotten and clattering to the floor.

"I'll stay down here. More room," Poe said, curling up into a drunk ball at the foot of the bed, where he would have closed his eyes except they were too cute to look away from, and Finn was a dizzying rainbow of color and designs. "Wow, Rey, the flowers!" They had obscured the scar, mostly, where they hadn't enhanced it. You could still tell there was a scar there, but it was gorgeous. Not that it wasn't gorgeous, anyway, by virtue of being on Finn's body.

"Nooooo, come here you have to sleep up here," Finn said belatedly, and then realized they'd moved on. He blushed and tried to get a look at his back, but he could see it no better now than he ever could. He huffed a sigh. "Wish I could see it—but all of this is very pretty, too." He moved his arms so he could see them better and smiled at the designs crisscrossing his arms and legs.

"But you don't need help looking handsome," Poe said, and laughed, and clambered over both of them to reach his datapad. He took some holos, some of which might have turned out, and he showed one of his back to Finn so he could see the design. "These are going in my porn folder next to the TIE fighters...I mean!" he cried, and cackled. "Naked selfie!" he declared next, snapping more pictures of them all until he forgot what he was doing, or grew bored. It was hard to tell. Sleepy, confused drunk time now, apparently. There was something important— "Water. Should drink water," he said, but didn't get up. "When the room stops spinning," he decided, and closed his eyes, lying on his back with his head on Finn's shoulder.

Rey huffed and giggled in delight, grinning into the camera lens for the holos. Maybe there might be one good one to add to her locket. "I wish the holos showed up in color. You look very beautiful with all these colors on your skin like this. And Poe didn't draw a penis on your butt, don't worry," she said, grabbing the last pen to draw a heart on Finn's cheek and a flower on his temple. But Poe's lethargy was infectious, and now she was sleepy, too.

"Yes. When the room stops spinning," Finn agreed. Anyway, he couldn't very well go anywhere with Poe using him as a pillow. That would have required making Poe move, and he wasn't about to do that. When Rey tucked herself along his other side, it was all over—he was never moving again, unless they did.

"Best pillow," Rey told him as she pulled his arm around behind her so she was pressed up under his arm with her head on his shoulder. She sighed happily and his heart melted a little.

Poe hummed and rolled over, kissing across Finn's chest—a landscape of stars and flowers and planets and starships and hearts—to kiss Rey good night.

"Lights," Poe moaned. "Someone get the lights. Beeeeeeeee heeeeeelp!" he called, but BB-8 was probably ignoring him. "Okay. Finn lost strip sabacc so he has to get the lights."

"You're going to make our pillow move?" Rey accused, like he had suggested selling Ewoks into slavery.

"Fiiiiiiine," Poe said, staggering to his feet to shut off the lights. There was a faint glow from a console, but he cursed as he nearly tripped on the return voyage.

Rey giggled, only now remembering that she had installed a light switch by her bed, and elected not to mention this.

"Best pillow," Poe agreed when he returned, and sighed contentedly.

"For real sleeping now?" Finn asked hopefully, and Rey nodded. That was really all the convincing he needed, and he was asleep before he realized it.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, however, Finn needed some serious convincing to even wake up, pretty sure he was dying, or dead. He whimpered and buried his face against someone's shoulder, and heard soft noises as Bee rolled around nearby doing who-knew-what. The rolling stopped and there was a loud, indignant honking right next to the bed that made Finn sit bolt upright and grab his screaming head.

"Holy fucking kriffing shit!" Rey snapped, rolling away from the boys and their droids and their noise and covering her ears with a pillow.

"Oh my gods, Bee!" Poe shouted, also sitting up, misjudging the space, and tumbling out of bed. "Fuck!"

[Whoa, okay] BB-8 said, unimpressed. [Clearly ten hours is still not enough to sleep off a hangover of that magnitude.] But they weren't an evil droid, so they didn't say anything else, and left.

"Yoda's tits," Poe groaned, trying to bury his face into the floor, "I'm dying. I—I can't—what _happened_ last night?"

"We drank. A lot. I think we ate, and clearly you two got artistic," Finn said very quietly, his voice scratchy. "Oh my gods why this," he added, and feel back onto the pillows.

"Karking fuck," Rey groaned again. It was the extra shot. Never again. "Poe, how are you not dead? You drank twice as much as us!"

"You tell me. The last thing I remember is eating stir fry," Poe said. "Tell me I didn't puke anywhere."

[You'd probably feel better if you had] BB-8 said, at a blessedly lower volume, returning dragging a carton full of water pouches behind them. [Drink] they ordered. [I am assuming command of the vessel until you are functioning at at least 70% capacity.]

"Thanks, Bee," Poe groaned, getting up on one elbow. "You are a saint among droids and I don't deserve you." He cut into a pouch with some difficulty and downed the whole thing. Finally his eyes rolled to Rey and Finn still on the bed. "When did we draw on you?" he asked, blinking at Finn's multicolored skin, and the smears of ink on the sheets.

"Before bed. Don't you remember, Poe? We've been planning it," Rey said, squinting down at him from the bed. "He loved it. I think." 

Poe sprawled onto his back. "I'm telling you, I blacked the fuck out. Don't remember a thing. Maker help me. I'll never drink again if I live through this."

"Yes you will," Finn said tiredly, because he was having the same thought, and he knew it wouldn't last—not around the pilots or his troops or the Resistance in general, because as good as they were at fighting, they did enjoy drinking when they could...

"Why is the 'memory full' light blinking on this?" Rey asked. She'd grabbed the holopad from the side table and was looking at it.

"It shouldn't be..." Finn said, and reached over to hit the button to bring up the display, which seared both his and Rey's eyes. He made an inarticulate sound of pain that was promptly cut off because it was loud and that hurt too, and Rey hastily scrabbled for the display button to shut the holopad off. "Did we take pictures?" Finn asked when his brain had stopped trying to leak out his ears.

"Don't ask me," Poe groaned. "I could have been dancing naked on the table for all I know."

"I’m pretty sure I would have remembered that. We ate, then we played sabacc—"

"I remember eating?" Poe said.

"And then we chased Finn around and then we drew on him with these pens. Which we dropped on the floor. And some of them are ruined now I think," Rey complained.

"We can get more," Poe said.

"Good. And we took pictures to show Finn his back," Rey said. "You sure you don't remember this, Poe? You seemed remarkably lucid for someone who was blackout drunk," she laughed, but that hurt her head, and it turned into a sob. She tried drinking some more water, but felt too ill. "Here," she said, turning down the brightness on the holopad and showing it to Finn. "There's your back. With flowers. And...schematics?"

"I drew _schematics_ while I was blacked out drunk?" Poe cried, and then thought better of his outburst.

"Well, I didn't say they were _good_ schematics," Rey teased.

"Yeah what are these _for_?" Finn asked. He tried to focus on the schematics but it made his eyes water so he drank some water instead and whimpered when it made his stomach turn. "I hate everything," he said, and tried to decide if he was going to throw up or if he just felt really bad.

"Okay," Poe croaked. "Okay. We're going to go eat," he declared, but took a few minutes to sit up. "We are going to drink water, carbload, and take some painkillers. For kriff's sake, my droid is running the ship and BB-8 doesn't get paid enough for that. And we're going to have a relaxing day and cuddle as much as possible." He swallowed carefully. "But food." With a groan, he rolled to his knees, and started crawling toward the galley, not caring who followed.

He made it to his feet when he reached the galley, but realized then that he had no clothes on. Whatever. He didn't need clothes to make toast and eggs. Toast and powdered eggs. Easy. Don't throw up, Dameron. You're a big boy who can hold his liquor and has no gag reflex you are _not_ going to puke.

Through sheer force of will, Poe made it through toast and powdered eggs, filling three plates with a modest amount. Water to drink. Maybe a sports drink, split between the three of them. Good thing he was a pro at the morning after (moon's sakes, Dameron, why are you an expert at this? You are getting married now, you better cut it out).

Finn and Rey emerged just as he was sitting down to his plate. He silently slid their food in front of them.

"What if I puke?" Finn asked, eyeing the food. Even Rey, perpetually starving desert scavenger, was thinking twice about eating, which really only showed how bad she felt, too. "This is terrible. I'm dying. Never let me drink again," Finn croaked and took a very small nibble of toast.

"I know," Poe said. "Just try. Go slow. It'll make you feel better," he promised, and slid them their drinks, too.

They ate in companionable silence, the kind where you suffered together and were just glad not to be alone. Poe eventually perked up enough to make coffee, and Rey and Finn both drank about half a cup.

"Okay," Rey said, breaking a half-hour silence. "Let's not do that again."

"I'm going to tell BB-8 to hide the alcohol," Poe said. He looked up and grinned at Finn. "And you should probably grab a shower."

"You have some printed on your chest and face," Rey said. "Like the sheets."

Poe laughed. "We should maybe get better pens. More permanent."

"You should get the permanent kind that they use on the clothes in medical." Finn was at least together enough now to not want to die, although he was pretty sure he could sleep for the rest of the day given half a chance. But he dragged himself to his feet and yawned, then took his plate to the small sink and turned toward the doorway. "I'm going to need help with my back if this won't just rinse off," he said with a little half smile before he headed in that direction.

Rey and Poe looked at each other, grinning for the first time that day.

"The fresher here is smaller than yours, even," Rey said, like if he didn't know better, she wanted Finn all to herself.

"Excellent," Poe said, and they might have sprinted off after Finn if they had felt better, but as it was they still _rushed_ , and crowded into the refresher just to get their hands on him.

This made everyone feel better, even though it was a tight fit.

Possibly _especially_ because it was a tight fit. 

"Yes, permanent pens," Rey declared as they were drying off. "Then I can write 'if found, please return to Rey Kenobi Dameron' on _both_ of you."

Poe huffed, pretending to be offended though he was actually flattered, and blushed. "Sweetheart, I'll gladly get a tattoo over anything you want to draw on me," he declared, and Rey hummed, liking the sound of that.

Finn was surprised, when they were once again dry and in comfortable, clean clothes (more or less—though everyone had managed a shirt and underwear, no one was wearing pants of any description) that the shower had not somehow cured his hangover. He was still tired. "Anyone else not feel fantastic still?" he asked. "What if we went and kept BB-8 company, instead of...working or something?"

Poe beamed, eyes softening at Finn's unabashed smile. There was something about how Finn said _nice_ things, unironic and unashamed, that made Poe feel like the entire galaxy got a little brighter. "Sure, buddy. BB-8 would love that."

Rey pressed a kiss to Finn's temple. "Sorry you don't feel well, though," she said, squeezing his hand. She shivered slightly, and Poe slung a blanket over her shoulders.

"We could all snuggle up in the cockpit and watch the stars streak past," Poe said. "I'll make some tea."

"You really don't feel hungover at all still?" Finn asked Rey, and she shrugged one shoulder.

"It's not that bad. I could work around it if I had to," she told him, but then pulled his arm across her shoulder and pressed against his side. "But I don't have to. Tea, stars, you two, and BB-8 sound like a much better option." Finn smiled down at her, since she was pretending to be short to fit comfortably under his arm. It won him a bright grin in return, and he laughed.

"I call shotgun," he joked.

"When has that _ever_ worked? Ever? I'll just sit on you."

"Shhh, you'll give away my plan."

"To me...?" There was quiet for a moment before: "Poe, you need any help with the tea? Finn is trying to flirt and I can't figure out if I think it's cute or if he just sounds pathetic."

Poe smiled. "You could keep me company?" he tried. "Or you could get all the pillows and blankets in the...ah, cockpit." He had really almost forgot the word. A word with 'cock' in it, yes, that was a true indicator of how sick he was.

"We could do both," Rey said, and she and Finn first loaded up the cockpit with pillows and blankets and adjusted the chairs before meeting Poe in the galley. Poe was weakly scrubbing out a pan, which Rey relieved him of when the water had boiled.

"Rey, sweetheart, don't—you know you don't have to act tough if you're in pain, right?" Poe said after a minute, face pinched. "I just don't like the thought of you...thinking you have to work through anything, anymore, you know?"

Rey laughed and hugged him and Finn. "You two! I really think I have less of a hangover than you do, honest," she said, kissing their cheeks and preventing Poe from burning himself as he moved against the hot pot. 

He beamed and hugged her. They waited for the tea to steep, enjoying how they _felt_ to each other, just being there. Somehow, Poe thought (and Rey and Finn thought, too), his head hurt less when he was in their heads.

[Just don’t get in my way] BB-8 was telling them as they invaded their space, but Poe (and Rey and Finn) could tell that they were just pretending to be gruff but the droid was actually enormously pleased that they had joined them. [Shall I play some music?]

“Softly, maybe, yeah, buddy,” Poe said, pulling his knees up as he curled into the pilot’s chair, which turned out to be a mistake because then Rey curled up in Finn’s lap. At least Finn put his feet in Poe’s lap, though, so he could massage them (and definitely only tickle them once).

"I like the way they look like this," Finn said eventually, watching out the cockpit window as stars stretched and streaked past them. Rey sighed contentedly and moved her head so she could rest it against his shoulder and see more of the stars at the same time. Soft music of some variety was playing over the speakers, making Finn drowsy as he stared into endless space.

"It's not a bad view, is it?" Rey asked, glancing pointedly at Poe. Finn followed where she was looking and smiled when Poe met their eyes.

"Stars aren't bad either," Finn said, and Rey snorted.

"That was terrible."

"That was sweet. And you started it. Not my fault you gave me the perfect setup." Rey buried her face against Finn's shoulder and shook her head, grinning at Finn's unrepentant fondness for cliché and terrible witticisms.

Poe giggled and beamed at them.

Rey smiled and also slid her feet into Poe's lap, so he would massage them, too. Since Finn was only barely getting anything out of this that didn't tickle, Poe switched to Rey, who sighed and sprawled between the both of them.

At one point, almost without realizing what he was doing, Poe began to sing, at first along with the music, and then something else. It was a song that was popular on Yavin, and was in a language Finn and Rey didn't understand, but through their bond they knew it was about love.

"That's a sad song," Rey said. "I don't know what it's about, but it's sad."

Poe smiled ruefully, trying to hide under his curls as he focused on her feet, and now Finn's again. "Yeah. Most of the Yavin love songs are sad. That's the one about the lovers dying and from their bodies two vines grow intertwined." He shrugged. "Bee's music sounded like it."

Finn leaned over to catch one of Poe's hands and squeezed it briefly before dropping it and sitting back. "Are there any happy Yavinese love songs?" he asked, and there was a soft whirring noise before another song came on. But there were no words, and Finn looked expectantly at Poe to start singing.

"There are a few," he said wryly, and started singing one they all knew well—or at least Rey did, the parts that were in Basic, anyway—and soon they were singing together, humming and smiling at each other.

“In this crazy world of choices I've only got a few  
Either you're coming with me, or I'm coming with you  
'Cause I finally found, I finally found you  
You never have to worry if what I say is true  
Girl, I've been looking for you  
And when I saw you I knew, that I finally found,  
I finally found you.”

Soon they changed direction, and were singing to Finn. He beamed back at them, petting Rey's hair, and Rey giggled, suddenly forgetting the words.

Finn wrapped the long strands of Rey's hair around his fingers, smiling as she tipped her head so he could play with the hair at the base of her neck. She was half asleep now that the singing was over, he thought, and she was humming some tuneless song so that it more seemed as if she was purring. "Rey, have you ever met a cat?" he asked her, and she shook her head just slightly. "Hux had one. She was fairly unpleasant, but she made this noise, you know, this rattling sound, every once in awhile.”

"I've seen holos, Finn, I know cats purr," she said, but there was no annoyance in it.

Poe cackled so suddenly it hurt his head. "That's _you_ , Finn," he said. "You're the purrer. It's really cute."

"He _does_!" Rey agreed. "Poe, c'mere," she said. "We can both sit on Finn's lap."

Poe needed no encouragement, curling up next to Rey and around Finn. "Comfy Finn," he said, tucking his head against Finn's neck.

"I'm not entirely convinced the chairs are meant to handle this," Finn said as he shifted to be more comfortable and to give Rey and Poe enough room.

[R2 will be annoyed if you break that] BB-8 warned them, rolling past on their way to the console. They were still pretending to be sullen. Finn reached over the arm of the chair and touched their dome gently.

"Thanks for watching out for us, buddy."

[Someone has to if you're going to be foolish.] They sounded grouchy, but there was a fondness under it.

"Maybe. But you're a good friend. Hey. Heard any good droid gossip lately?" BB-8 loved gossiping, usually. They made a pleased burbling sound. "I heard they're bringing in a few new droids to work with the Stormtroopers. Deeks is beside himself with excitement," Finn prompted, and that was all it took for Bee to launch into a long explanation of the new droids, what they were like and what models they were and their manufacturing dates and other things that meant a lot to droids and not as much to their organic partners. But Finn listened, smiling, and alternated between petting Rey's hair and petting Poe's.

Poe rested his head against Finn's shoulder, barely able to stifle laughter, so he just grinned at his little droid as they told him all about the newest droids. "You really are the best, buddy," he said. "We'll be better tomorrow. Maybe I could give you an oil bath, huh?"

BB-8's head spun in an eager circle at that, which Poe took as a yes.

Poe slid down from the chair, his head on Finn's knee, and tilted back to look up at the stars. "This is...a good place. Love being here with you guys." He grinned. "We should try it when we're less hungover."

"Yeah, we should. Maybe this should be our honeymoon? Well, part of it. Flying around and watching stars." It would be even better if Rey accidentally broke their ability to receive communications so no one could interrupt them.

On second thought, that would make him a nervous wreck, so maybe it was a bad idea. Maybe if they could only receive communications from certain people...

"I think I'm falling asleep," he told Rey and Poe.

They hadn't been awake for more than eight hours, but Poe couldn't agree more.

"Yeah, maybe we could go back to sleep and just...try again tomorrow," Rey said, and she grinned down at how Poe and BB-8 were snuggled together, like BB-8 was a child or a pet or a friend instead of a droid. "You know, BB-8, if Poe is going to give you an oil bath, what can Finn and me do to make today up to you?"

BB-8 swiveled their head up with a little gasp, and considered the offer shyly. [Well. I did like the flowers Friend-Finn got to wear...]

Poe was beaming helplessly. The only thing cuter than BB-8 was Rey and Finn being so _sweet_ to BB-8.

"Yeah? I think we can do flowers. We still have pens, right?" Finn asked, and Rey nodded.

"If we wait till after Poe has cleaned you up, they'll last longer," Rey suggested. This made BB-8 rock back and forth in a bobbling circle, nearly rolling themselves clear out of Poe's reach in their excitement. They came zipping back close with a soft thump as they hit Poe, still burbling away. Finn caught Poe's eyes and smiled. He loved this little droid.

BB-8 hooted something so softly Poe had to lean in. "What's that, buddy?"

[Only good colors] BB-8 repeated, and Poe laughed.

"Right, good. Only orange and white," he said. "Promise."

BB-8 seemed comforted. [Maybe black is okay. A little bit of pink.]

"Got it," Poe said, smiling up at Finn and Rey like they were in on a joke. "We wouldn't want anyone to get confused and not be able to tell who you are."

[Right??] BB-8 exclaimed. [Stupid organics got C3PO mixed up all the time because of his red arm, and he was very distraught. So make sure my colors don't change!!]

Poe laughed and held up his hands. "Don't look at me, Rey is the one who does flower art."

"Only pre-approved colors," Rey promised with a giggle, and pawed a hand through Poe's hair.

BB-8 looked up at Finn. [Friend-Finn will help?] BB-8 trusted Finn's taste, as one who had already been drawn on.

"Of course I'll help—but Rey is much better at flowers than I am," Finn told BB-8, who wiggled happily.

[You could draw something else,] they suggested, and Finn smiled. Apparently BB-8 really wanted him to draw.

"Sure, I'll find something," he told them. BB-8 did the pleased swivel that reminded Finn so much of a cat making a nest and hooted quietly.

"But tomorrow," Poe said, and BB-8 agreed.

[It will be sloppy if you do it now.] They were a very neat droid. Really, Poe wasn't sure how everyone in his life had to be such perfectionists.

"Okay, up," he said, helping Rey and Finn to their feet. "I'll grab some fruit to keep in the room, for when we get hungry," he offered, staggering toward the galley dragging the blanket wrapped around him.

"And water?" Finn asked, then decided that was a lot to carry when you were trying to hold on to a blanket and went after Poe to help instead of back toward the room. Rey stayed to make sure everything was okay as far as BB-8 was concerned and then went straight back to the bedroom, picking up some of their clothes that were strewn around the corridors and unraveling her blanket nest from the previous night. Then she decided that the ink on the sheets was frustrating and she remade the bed with the other set of sheets. She was just finishing when Poe and Finn returned from the galley.

Poe laughed. "It's like we can read each other's minds," he said, when they had finally settled in their bedroom with everything they could possibly need. "Clean blankets, clean water, clean food, and each other," he surveyed.

"Relatively clean," Rey added, and then giggled. "Well, you still have a dirty mind. So does Finn, he's just very good at hiding it."

“And so do _you_ , however asexual you are.” Poe laughed and laid his head in Rey's lap, and opened his arms for Finn to join them.

Finn was more than happy to cuddle up with his loves, his head resting on Poe's shoulder and an arm thrown over Rey's leg. "If I have to be hungover, this is how I always want to do it," he told them. He could probably sleep right here, all night long.

"I know this is a crazy idea, but maybe we just shouldn't get hungover again," Rey suggested.

"And miss out on this? No way."

Rey looked down at him with her eyebrows raised and he grinned sweetly up at her.

"You're ridiculous. Both of you." She combed her fingers through Poe's hair and, when Finn gave her an especially pathetic look, shifted so she could scratch his arm.

"It was an accident," Poe pointed out. "Honestly, I'm the victim here. Never letting you make cocktails again." But he was grinning, wasn't actually harmed, and frankly should have known better.

"But you still love us?" Rey hummed, petting and gently scratching Poe and Finn, respectively.

"Love you even more," Poe said, winding an arm around each of them. "You take good care of me even when I'm drunk and hungover." He sighed.

They were quiet, and Rey let herself slip into a meditation just at the sounds of their breathing. It was easy like this. Everything was easy, and natural with them around.

Poe shifted, disturbing her just a little, but then she heard the sounds of Finn and Poe kissing wetly, deeply, hotly, but too tired to move anything more than lips. Their soft sighs grounded her easily, and when she was One with the Force like this, she wondered what the _hells_ the Old Jedi Order had against attachment.

Finn was warm, and happy, and he was giving Poe sleepy kisses right until they both more or less fell asleep. He woke up slightly and mumbled a complaint when Rey eventually snuggled down next to them, arranging Poe to one side and Finn to the other. She gave him a sloppy kiss on the forehead and pulled his arm over her side so he was tucked behind her. When Poe likewise complained, she shushed him and stroked his hair back from his face before settling down. Once she was sure they were again asleep, she sighed contentedly and let herself drop off as well.


	5. Chapter 5

Poe woke feeling 100% better, all the more so because he was lying on top of the two beautiful people he would soon be married to. He smiled and kissed them awake. Rey squeaked and squirmed adorably, and Finn groaned and flung a hand around Poe's back. This made it very hard to leave, but Poe kissed them until they released him, and he and BB-8 started making breakfast together.

[I'm only helping so we get to my oil bath faster] the droid said, but Poe could tell they were doing it out of the goodness of their circuits. And it had been a long time since Poe and his droid had had some good one-on-one time (when they weren't working). 

Finn and Rey emerged at the smell of caf, and bacon, which they were now all properly hungry for.

"Sevens didn't believe you cooked for us," Rey said, sidestepping Poe as he turned with a hot pan. She took three pouches of water from the small refrigerator in the galley and handed them around so they weren't just drinking caf.

“I’ll cook for them, too, if they want,” Poe offered. “For all the stormtroopers!” He was suddenly irritated he hadn’t thought of this before.

"So, Bee, you ready to get painted?" Finn asked the little droid.

[Oil bath first!] they responded happily.

"That's their favorite part," Poe laughed. "You guys can help."

[But my parts will be showing!] BB-8 gasped.

"Oh, like you haven't seen any of us naked," Poe said, setting plates down in front of Rey and Finn.

BB-8 considered this. [Very naked] they agreed. [In compromising and humorous positions.]

"Breakfast okay?" Poe asked, wanting to change the subject. "I feel like if you're telling every stormtrooper we meet that I cook for people, I should really be stepping it up."

"Not _every_ stormtrooper," Rey answered.

"It was relevant. We were eating protein rations at the time." Finn tasted the bacon and made a soft moaning sound that caused Rey to laugh and nearly choke on her food. "But I might have to tell more of them if you don't promise to make more of this bacon," he said shyly.

"More now?" Poe cried. "We have to save some bacon for future breakfasts in endless reaches of Wild Space. Stop it!" he cried, as Rey stole a piece from his plate and replaced it with fruit.

"I'm sorry, I can't help myself. I have years of bacon to catch up on. _Pity us_!" she cried, giggling and giving him puppy-dog eyes.

"Oh, gods, don't get him on it!" Poe moaned, but once Finn pouted, too, it was all over.

They finished breakfast, and Poe left Rey and Finn to the dishes (chef's prerogative as well as I-gave-you-my-bacon prerogative) while Poe left to the cargo hold where the oil chamber was and began heating it up.

"Okay, buddy, you sure you want to stay active for this or you want to go to standby mode?"

[No, that's creepy. I like how it feels.]

"Okay. You might freak Finn out a little when he comes in here and sees you disassembled. Rey, too." Poe grinned, and BB-8 would have grinned in return, if they could.

[ _Yes_.]

"Hey Poe, are you guys in here? Where'd—" Rey gasped softly in horror, and Finn slammed into her when she stopped walking suddenly.

"What're you _oh my gods_ ," Finn said. BB-8 was in several pieces, wires and circuits gushing everywhere, their dome was set off to one side, and it looked a lot like a murder had taken place.

"Poe, how come BB-8 is taken apart? What's wrong?" Finn asked, looking in panic at his fiancé.

"Well, how else do you expect me to give them a proper oil bath?" Poe deadpanned. "Gotta get all his circuits clean inside and out. Don't worry, he usually comes back online just fine afterward, though there was that one time where his settings got switched to Yavinese by mistake?"

A familiar hoot came from the head piece, and Rey jumped. Finn yelped.

[Poe is lying to try to tell an amusing story] BB-8 said, sounding annoyed.

"How are they talking?" Rey screeched, having-just-seen-a-Rathtar-eat-a-man-horrified.

[Poe, turn me around, I can't see their reactions!]

"Bee, buddy, I got your lens out, remember?" Poe said, trying not to laugh and failing.

"You've got their _what_ out?!" Finn cried, having-to-go-back-to-Jakku-ballistic.

[Oh. Put it back in, quick! Did we scare them??]

Poe looked up at Rey and Finn, who shrank back. "Um. Yeah. Yeah I think—oh, you gotta see this, hang on, buddy," Poe said, fitting his droid's lens back in and turning the head in his lap towards the pair, who hadn't moved and didn't look any less horrified.

BB-8 hooted in laughter, and bits of his disassembled body wriggled in delight.

"Kriff!" It was Rey's turn to yelp and jump back. "How are you doing that?" she demanded. "How are they—Poe, that can't be—"

"I doesn't hurt them, does it?" Finn demanded.

Poe and BB-8 were still laughing. "No, no, they're fine."

[It feels embarrassing more than anything, so I'll thank you not to stare] BB-8 scolded. [And it's _much_ preferable to going offline!!] BB-8 and Poe had similar policies on sleeping when they were dead.

Finn was still slightly horrified, but maybe that was more from the shock of a disassembled BB-8 where he wasn't expecting them. "So you don't like going offline but you don't mind being in multiple pieces?" he asked.

[It is nice to be clean... And I don't mind if it's Friend-Poe. He won't break anything.] The tone of their binary code was almost reverent, which shouldn't have been possible in something that spoke using a system of beeps and squawks and other mechanical sounds.

"Could I help?" Rey asked suddenly, and BB-8 whirred softly, a quiet chuckle.

[Yes. We will tell you what to do!] they told her.

"Gonna get all clean," Poe said, wrestling BB-8’s chassis and processors onto a tray, careful to drag the wires along behind in some semblance of order. It was a side-loader, and Poe grinned as he helped Rey position BB-8's head, last of all, onto the tray.

"Okay, buddy, hold your breath and count to twenty for me!"

[I don't breathe, Friend-Poe, this is still not funny. I will start my count when I'm inside."

"Okay, but we don't want to fry your circuits. I know it feels good, but I mean it, twenty seconds."

[I don’t try to curb _your_ having fun when it’s bad for you, but okay] BB-8 hooted, and Poe laughed and slid him in.

"Why don't they call you 'Master'?" Rey wondered suddenly.

Poe made a face. "I mean, it's not like I programmed it out of their data banks. But they don't like it and I don't like it. Got old after the first year or so we were together."

[Time’s up!] BB-8 cried, and Poe switched off the oil bath and tugged on the tray.

"Lookin good, Bee,” he said as his friend emerged in a cloud of steam. “Finn, Rey, grab a cloth. We start by getting the excess oil off."

"R2 doesn't always call Luke 'Master' either," Finn said. He picked up a towel and one of the orange circular panels from BB-8's body and started wiping it clean.

"No, but C-3PO does," Rey responded. "Can you imagine if anyone else tried to make R2 call them 'Master'?" Finn laughed and BB-8 burbled.

"I am sure his response would be eloquent and also full of profanity."

[It irritates C-3PO when he curses! I think he enjoys it. I do not understand them.] BB-8 said.

"R2 _does_ call him ‘Master-Luke’ in front of 3PO, though," Poe observed. "Always. Because 3PO likes it, so he does it so 3PO won't freak out." He huffed. "Those two are practically married and no one can convince me any different."

[Towels up!] BB-8 hooted, and Poe demonstrated by holding his towel in front of his face, while BB-8 whirred his rotary motors and shook out excess oil, which splattered everywhere.

Poe laughed. "Feel better?"

[Much!]

"Okay gang, this is where we buff anything that needs it," Poe explained, demonstrating and fitting the finished pieces of the droid back together. "I have brushes, too, to get into gears and things, for any oil we missed. Rey, ask BB-8 before you take anything further apart. Finn, they like to pretend they're ticklish for attention, so don't worry."

"Oh yeah? Bee, you would never do something just for attention, would you?" Finn asked as he set about carefully cleaning, using a small brush for some little gears. BB-8 made a waterfall sound of chattering and swiveled, for all the world seeming to be ticklish. Finn laughed and patted them. "Answers that question!" he chuckled. The droid wobbled happily, but made no sound because Rey was meticulously cleaning the smallest of their several speakers. When she was done they dropped the bass—a noise Rey and Finn hadn’t been aware BB-8 could make—which shook out the last of it.

Poe beamed, falling even harder in love with Rey and Finn for how tenderly they treated BB-8. Poe was honestly so easy for anyone who was nice to his droid—he was pretty sure he could try to see eye to eye with Supreme Leader Snoke if the madman treated BB-8 to a smile—but then BB-8 also loved Rey and Finn and approved of them, too. He laughed. "Sometimes it feels like I already have a kid, you know, single-dad-Poe, and if you didn't approve of Bee or they didn’t approve of you guys, then we just couldn't be together," he said, not sure if that made sense to anyone but him.

[I'm not a baby, Poe!] BB-8 reminded him. [Even if I were an organic, I would be ten point seven standard years—]

Poe waved a hand. "Forget I said anything." Rey and Finn didn't know enough about dating to even get conceptually the dynamics of single-parent dating and find it funny. "I just—thanks, all of you. For being good to each other. Sharing me. Loving the people I love." He shook himself. "Sorry, didn't mean to get all mushy on you..." he said as he eased BB-8’s chassis back together, spinning until it clicked into place. It was just so _cute_ , he couldn't help himself.

Rey set aside her towel and wrapped get arms around Poe's chest while Finn leaned against his side and put his arms around his shoulders. Not to be left out, BB-8 rolled right into his lap and whirred. "Mmmm, I like it when you say sweet, mushy things," Rey hummed. Finn hummed in agreement and nodded his head against Poe's shoulder.

"Ohh nnooo, it's the worst," Poe said. "Look what I have to deal with when I do," he added, so obviously sarcastic he couldn't say it without laughing. As it was, he was fairly well stuck in the middle of a hug, and he settled into it, warm and hemmed in on all sides, kissing all he could reach, which was Rey's shoulder and Finn's cheek.

"Now," he said, when that was quite enough hugs for one day (he'd probably last an hour, in all reality), "those pens we used on Finn probably won't actually draw on your hull very well, Bee, so let's go find some paints. Han had a supply closet somewhere around here, right?" He really hoped he hadn't got BB-8’s hopes up if he couldn't deliver, or they'd be hitting a bazaar or five on the Outer Rim. Poe knew a few places on Mon Calamari they could try, but the Falcon was conspicuous...

"Oh, good idea! But then they'll need to be scrubbed off," Rey said, knowing exactly where the paints were, because she had used them on the walls in her room. "So you'll have to have another oil bath when you grow tired of the look, BB-8," she giggled.

[Oh, _nooooo_ ] BB-8 replied, deeply, deeply sarcastic. [Just don't screw it up] they added, as Poe and Finn laughed and got BB-8's head on straight. [Orange and white only!]

"And a little bit of black and pink, you said."

[Yes, that's all right. Pink and black accents.]

"What on this ship requires pink paint?" Finn asked as Rey led them to the closet that contained all the paint that might be needed on the Falcon.

"Nothing, but there's plenty of red and white, so..." she answered. "Here we are, paint! And unused paintbrushes. I think there are some really small ones for the trim on some places." They would work especially well on details. "And we'll need somewhere with light."

Poe eased BB-8 onto a towel to drag them to the holochess table, onto which all three of them heaved the droid with considerable effort.

"Okay," Poe said, and then all four of them inspected the paints. Luckily, there was plenty of orange, and plenty of white, and they mixed the pink to BB-8's satisfaction (it was more a salmon, really, and it gave Poe the idea for what he would paint first). "So, we each pick a plate and go, right? Do you want us to take them off while we work on them, BB-8?"

[No! It feels nice!] BB-8 claimed, and Poe didn't really want to argue with them, since he was known to pet his droid occasionally.

"Okay, so pick a pattern or theme and draw it on one hull plate at a time. Everyone comfy?" he said, sliding a stool up close and selecting a brush. He already knew exactly what he was going to start with.

[I can rotate if it's more helpful] BB-8 said, whirling his plates in example.

"Okay, but now you need to hold still," Rey laughed.

Finn started drawing with no real plan, painting blocks of color and some geometric designs and some polka dots, using mainly orange and outlining in black. He used a very little bit of pink to draw extra lines in some of the orange, once it was dry and wouldn't just smear. When he was done, he still had no idea what he'd drawn, but it was pretty. He looked over at Rey's panel and there were flowers crawling all around the orange circle that was part of BB-8's usual colors. When she saw him looking at her designs, she made a vine that wound through the edge of his designs.

"That's great, Finn!" Poe praised. "Ah, Rey, your plants are better than mine!" Poe complained, because painting a tree from above was kind of hard. But Poe knew how BB-8 liked the Force Tree in spring bloom (with pink blossoms), so he did his best. In the end it was maybe more like a bush with pink flowers, but BB-8 liked it well enough. He moved onto a second panel, this time tracing abstract flowers and dots like the body-painting patterns people wore on Mirial.

"What is that?"

"I...dunno," Poe admitted.

[I hope you are not messing up!] BB-8 warned.

"Oh? What are you gonna do about it?" Poe teased.

[Don't test me.]

"BB-8, it's great," Poe promised. "You're going to look great. No one's going to mess up anything."

"Okay, I think we need you to shift plates, BB-8," Rey said, once those they had access to had dried. "Finn, do you want to do the honors on their head?"

"Can I?" Finn asked, and BB-8 tilted their dome toward him. He very carefully drew a continuation of the designs he'd already drawn on his own panel. When he'd finished, he sat back on his heels and looked at Rey and Poe. "Is that okay? Bee, do you want us to take a holo so you can see?" he asked them.

"Hang on," Rey said, jumping up and going to some scrap metal in the corner, finally drawing out a shiny panel and dragging it over. "Can you see yourself in this, Bee?" she said excitedly, and BB-8 trundled over, carefully, in case any parts weren't dry.

[Oh!! Yes!! So many colors!!] BB-8 shrieked, at a high volume. [Oh, spots!! And flowers!! And the tree from home!!]

Poe was covering his ears, smearing paint in his hair. "Nice, BB-8. Glad you like it."

"Wow, buddy, you really like the paint, huh?" Finn asked, wincing at the high-pitched, high volume noise BB-8 was making. The little droid whirled in a circle, chirping happily to themselves.

[Yes! It's very good!!!] they shrilled.

"Hey, Bee, could you turn the volume down just a little?"

[No! I am excited! Look at the tree Poe painted!!!] Rey chuckled as BB-8 rolled over and bumped Poe's shins.

"Oh, good, you can tell it's a tree," Poe said, the grin hurting his face already.

[And I like what Friend-Finn painted on my face!! Friend-Finn, what did you paint on my face?? I like it!!] BB-8 screeched. There were flowers but also flowing designs, and BB-8 was sure they looked very handsome. _Surely_ R-4 would notice them now. _Every_ droid and even the dumbest of organics would notice them now!!

BB-8 suddenly rolled up to Poe, very solemnly. [Never. Wash me. Again.]

Poe burst out laughing, hands on his knees. "But BB-8, then we can't paint new designs! Wouldn't you like new ones eventually?"

BB-8 wobbled in front of the mirror. [But I like these ones! You must purchase extra hull plates for me, and we can switch them out when I want new designs. Only once every few days...]

"Bee, buddy, I don't think I can—it’s a lot of work to—"

[Just kidding!] BB-8 chortled, and Poe laughed again, this time struggling for air.

"I have the cutest fucking droid," he wheezed.

"We can re-paint you for the wedding, though, how about that?" Finn asked, to another delighted screech that made him laugh. BB-8 rolled around a few more times to see themselves in the mirror and then settled with a happy little trill.

[Thank you, friends] they said a little shyly, which really only gave Finn the irresistible urge to drop to a knee and hug them.

"You're the best droid, Bee," he told them.

Okay, that's it. Finn was just pushing his buttons on purpose now. _Hugging_ BB-8? What could make Poe Dameron melt into a puddle faster? What could make him want to tear off all his clothes and throw himself at Finn faster? It made the nurturing parts of him gush, like he was a primitive human assessing potential mates for fitness based on their aptitude for caring for offspring. And in spite of possessing no biological equipment to do anything of the sort, it made him want to make a baby with this man. With both of them.

Nothing worked on Poe like sentiment, apparently.

"I say we draw on Finn for the wedding, too," he said, to distract himself in case he started crying and had to explain that he was getting sappy in his old age.

"I would like that," Rey said, "though I'm not sure I want everyone to know how handsome you are covered in flowers," she added with a giggle, her possessive streak flaring enough that Poe and Finn could feel it. "So maybe just for the honeymoon." 

[We can do more wedding planning after we recalibrate our next lightspeed jump] BB-8 said.

"Oh, is it time already?" Poe wondered.

BB-8 looked at him darkly, which was an odd look since they were now so festive. [I'll remind you that you _missed_ an entire day] BB-8 hooted, and Poe laughed.

" _Okay_ , I'm sorry. Can’t just let it go. Let me get cleaned up and I'll meet you in the cockpit."

"So I was thinking," Finn said when they got back to Rey's room, "What if when Poe gets back we...find a way to pass the time? That we'll all enjoy a lot?"

Rey looked over at him and grinned. "Like something that involves no clothes?"

"...Yes, that exactly."

Rey came over and kissed him, teasing him with a deeper, slower kiss than he was expecting. She wasn’t sure whether Finn was still shy about mentioning sex in general, or just around her. She stepped back and laughed. "You've got it bad, don't you?" she asked.

"How could I not, the way he was taking care of BB-8 so carefully and the way they plotted to freak us out? It's really cute, okay?" he said, almost sounding accusing. Apparently, nothing worked on Finn like sentiment, either.

Rey patted his shoulder. "I read this thing in one of his books that I think we should try. I think both of you will like it, and I know I will. And I think it’s a good compromise between what Poe wants and what you’re comfortable with. Poe might come apart all on his own, if we do it right."

Finn was staring at her thoughtfully, and then he smiled. "We could try," he agreed.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning for BDSM in this chapter, but let's be real, it's just as fluffy as vanilla sex with these guys...

"Poe?" Rey said, pulling Poe from where he and BB-8 were intently studying star charts and plotting their next jump.

"Hm? Hang on, we've almost—" he said, taking a few moments to look up. He glanced at them, briefly, smiling, but—something was very intense about the way they were staring at him, and he did a double-take. "Uhh, what's up, buddies? Can...can it wait ‘til we—"

"Make the jump. We can wait," Rey said. She was clutching a datapad to her chest.

Feeling heat spread through his face and chest, and rather like he was a very interesting bug being looked at under a microscope, Poe worked with BB-8 on getting them to lightspeed. "Okay, buddies, that should put us near Malagarr in…ugh, another 36 hours." It was annoying to have to take the long way, but it meant more time with his beloveds. Who were clearly planning something. He turned the chair, opening his arms. "Something I can help you with?" But he already had an idea what they wanted from him, he could see it in their eyes, and _oh_ , it was nice to be wanted by these two darlings who didn’t _dare_ to want anything.

"Yes. You should come with us," Finn said. He held out a hand to Poe.

Rey grinned like a cat and nodded. "Yes, we have something to show you."

Finn smiled and took Poe's hand to draw him to his feet and kiss him softly.

Poe beamed, feeling the flush creep down from his cheeks, through his chest, to settle low in his pelvis. He glanced between them and all but melted into their arms (they were bracketing him on either side, holding each other and him). Finn's kiss was heated and full of promise, and Poe very nearly whimpered, but it was too early. He was _easy_ but he wasn't _that_ easy. "Any chance you wanna make me?" he asked, teasing gently, testing the waters, and winked at Rey like that might goad Finn on further.

Rey only raised an eyebrow at that wink and nodded at Finn.

Finn’s eyes glinted mischievously. "Well, okay, you asked for it," he said, sighed as if he was terribly put-upon, and bent over to wrap his arms around Poe's waist. "Time to go." Rey was cackling as Finn straightened with Poe thrown over his shoulder, much like the time he'd carried him from the supply closet.

"Woah!" Poe cried, surprised (but not very) as Finn flung him over his shoulder (a display of strength that was sure to make him swoon). Poe _was_ surprised when Rey hauled off and smacked him on the ass, though, and he yelped.

"Hush, you liked that," she laughed, and, yeah, _yeah_ , he did.

He squirmed a little bit in Finn's hold, just enough to make it fun, and was grinning broadly as suddenly Finn flopped him down on the bed so hard he bounced.

"Okay, so here's the plan," Rey said, and was already sitting on his chest and pawing her hands possessively through his hair, like she was trying to straighten out the curl. "We have a nice dinner together. We have a nice shower together. We get ready for bed—"

Poe pretended to pout. "But I’m already _here_!” he declared, flopping dramatically back onto the bed. “When do we get to the good stuff?"

"So impatient!" Rey flicked his ear playfully, and he laughed and recoiled, cupping the offended ear.

" _Then_ we do this," she said, turning the datapad around to show him.

“Oh.” Poe's pupils dilated, though otherwise he tried to pretend he wasn’t deeply affected. "Uh," he said. "On me? Yeah. That. Yeah. Would be…fun. Is that all right with—you two?"

Finn crawled up the bed trying to see the datapad, but when Rey caught him at it she quickly shut it off and winked at him. " _You_ have to wait," she told him, and even though he gave her his best puppy dog eyes, she wouldn't let him within grabbing range of the holopad. She was mostly concerned that Finn would only work himself up—in the bad way—if she let him see it now.

Poe laughed. "You can just _wonder_ why I have a boner throughout dinner," he said, and laughed again, and Rey giggled, and now they wrestled Finn onto the bed and kissed him, a sloppy three-way kiss.

"Now, help me out, Finno: what dinner goes well with awkward boners and is quick to make and to eat?" Poe said, and dissolved into laugher against his shoulder.

"Make him slow-cook something!" Rey cackled. "We want a nine-course meal, Poe!"

"You are _not_ getting a nine-course meal. Even if I had all the blood in my brain you’re not getting that."

"Noodles and cheese!" Finn laughed, squirming as they continued kissing him. "Wait, better: bangers and mash!" This even gave Rey pause, at least until she dissolved into helpless laughter and collapsed on top of him. "Sausage sandwiches!" he whispered in her ear: "Hotdogs." He sort of ran out after that and trailed off into perfectly juvenile snickering at his genius food suggestions. Then he thought of one last one: "BEANIE WEENIES." And that was it, he was laughing too hard to breathe, much less speak.

"You're disgusting if you think chopped up hot dog will in any way arouse me," Poe laughed.

" _And_ you’re disgusting if you think beans and sex are a good idea. Even _I_ know that one," Rey agreed, also laughing.

Poe tickled Finn's ribs playfully. "Okay. Bangers and mash sounds great, actually, and we have good sausages." He only barely managed this without laughing, so he added: "Which _is_ what she said," he said, since Jessika wasn’t here to say it, and winked, and jumped out of bed and practically fled to the galley.

Rey caught her breath and smiled at Finn. "You're so silly. And I love it." She kissed him. "Thanks for being _fun_."

"I love you two," Finn said, sitting up and following Rey to the galley—but not before catching her waist and dipping her to smother her briefly with kisses. She started giggling again and he right her before she could fall. "Alright, alright, we have to be serious enough to eat without choking," he told her. She reached for his hand and kissed his cheek before letting him lead her to the galley.

"What's this about choking?" Poe said, the smell of frying sausage and onions and peppers already wafting through the air.

"Nothing. Want me to mix you a drink?" Rey asked.

" _Never_ again, no," Poe laughed.

"Only joking," Rey said. "I'm sure I never want to smell alcohol ever again."

BB-8 came trundling up, then, making sure to find a nice bright patch of light to roll into. [I thought you were going to be doing organic things all night?]

"We are," Poe said. "That includes eating and bathing, though, and—if I am a very good boy—fucking."

BB-8 sighed. [Very well. I'll ignore your vitals until morning. Again.]

"Probably a good idea, bud."

"You okay, Bee?" Finn asked, and the little droid wobbled at him.

[Yes, I am alright. I do not understand organics] they said. Rey patted them on the dome.

"I don't either, sometimes, to be fair," she told them. Having received the sympathy they apparently wanted, or maybe just the attention, BB-8 trundled over to a charging station and settled down. Finn smiled—they were making adorable little humming noises as they charged.

"Is it time to eat yet?" he asked obnoxiously.

"I am _literally_ working as fast as I can," Poe said, beginning to mash the potatoes while flipping sautéing sausages in the air to occasional bursts of flame—mostly on purpose, for show, which was what he would keep telling himself. "It's like I'm on that cooking show Iolo likes—the one where they have 20 minutes to prepare a meal from scratch using only certain ingredients?"

"I like that one, too," Finn admitted.

"I like this version a lot more. Poe, is your shirt supposed to be on fire?" Rey checked, and Poe yelped and quickly put his sleeve out, tearing his shirt off in the process.

When Rey and Finn were finished laughing: "Oh, I _really_ like this version better!" Finn cried.

"Ha ha," Poe said, plating the food with two dollops of potatoes crowned by one long thick sausage. He set it before them and waited.

"Something on your mind?" Rey snorted, and adjusted hers so it _didn't_ look like a phallus.

Finn tried really hard to take his food seriously, he did, but Poe had done this _on propose_. Rather than fixing it, he very deliberately cut up the sausage, piled some potatoes on top, and ate it very slowly. "Mmmmm, delicious," he joked, and Rey snorted.

"No, no, I'm fine," she coughed, "I'm alright, I just—" another cough, "Got a piece of sausage stuck—" cough "in my throat."

There was a beat of silence while they all processed what Rey had said, and then Finn chuckled, which turned into a full laugh. Rey spluttered indignantly because she hadn't meant to join in on Finn's game of innuendo bingo or whatever he was currently doing.

Poe thought, as the only one who had ever had a dick in his mouth, they were not taking this seriously enough, therefore: "NO ONE'S ALLOWED TO CHOKE ON MY SAUSAGE!" he said, and then Rey really _was_ dying and Finn was on the floor and while it was funny, Poe was beginning to get worried because he was actually sporting an actual hard-on and _they weren't finished eating yet_. He quickly bolted down his food to shame the others into eating faster, but Finn took one look at his stuffed cheeks and burst into laughter again.

"It's not even innuendo anymore, Poe, you look really funny!" Rey cackled.

He swallowed with difficulty. "I want you to hurry up!"

"Stop being funny and we will!" Rey laughed, and then sighed, and then opened one arm. "Come here, Poe," she said, because Poe was eating on the kitchen side, while Rey and Finn sat at the bar (or were when Finn crawled back into his seat).

"Then you'll make fun of my boner," he said, but brought his plate over and slid between them. Rey's arm was around his waist, so Finn's hand rested low over his ass. Poe coughed, but Finn only gave him a blinding smile and squeezed.

"You both drinking enough water?" Rey asked.

"Now we are," Poe answered, making sure they each had a pouch.

Finn dutifully drank the whole pouch of water while he finished his dinner (last, this time, since Poe had bolted his) and then leaned over to kiss just under Poe's ear. "Thank you for dinner," he told him in a low voice.

"You're flirting without me!" Rey said, mock-injured, and Finn stuck his tongue out at her.

"He's not," Poe defended. "Anyway you can flirt at each other through the hollow space between my ears."

"Really?" Rey laughed and leaned in to whisper filthily in his ear: "We're going to make him forget everything but our names. Going to make him scream and beg and forget how to fly."

Poe swallowed.

Finn, listening on the other side, pointed out, "I didn't hear anything."

"Well, go on," Rey said, giving Poe's knee a warning squeeze.

He blushed. "You, uhh, she said, you're gonna, she said I'm gonna forget everything but your names."

"And?" Rey prompted.

"And you're gonna make me scream?"

"Good," Rey said, and ruffled his hair.

Finn blushed at that, turning to grin a little nervously at Rey and Poe. "Sounds about right..." he said, and was rewarded with a tentatively glazed smile from Poe and a kiss from Rey, who leaned over Poe's lap to reach him.

Okay, and Rey— _Rey_ —now had her hand on his groin, and between that and Finn's hand still groping his ass, and Rey and Finn kissing inches from his face—

"Okay, if we want this over in ten minutes by all means keep going," Poe said weakly, and Rey and Finn smiled at each other and then at him, looking hungry even though their plates were empty.

"Fresher?" Rey asked Finn.

"Definitely," Finn said, and stood. He pulled Poe up after him, and Rey took all their plates and dumped them in the little sink to be cleaned later. "You going to show me what you showed Poe earlier?" Finn asked as they walked back toward the room, and Rey narrowed her eyes at him thoughtfully.

"Perhaps. What do you think, Poe?"

Finn turned to give Poe his best puppy dog eyes.

"Oh my gods, please," Poe groaned, trying to avoid his gaze. "I am _already weakened_!" His fingers tangled in their clothes, his eyes locked with Rey's unless they were locked with Finn's. "Yeah. Show him." He blinked, trying to play it much cooler than he felt. "If he freaks out we'll have to pick a different one."

"You mean _I'll_ pick a different one," Rey said with a smile, and led them to the tiny bathroom and the even tinier refresher. "You. Get naked," she instructed, and ducked out of the bathroom with Finn to show Finn the datapad, with the model posed in intricate ropework. "See, this one's nice because," she began, trying to get a read on how Finn was taking this, "well, it looks uncomfortable, right, his arms pulled way up behind him, and it will hurt after a while just being in it. Then you don't have to—since I know you don't like hurting him—"

"But—he’ll be completely…helpless, won't he?" Finn asked, no sure how he felt about that part of it. The thought of Poe in a position where he could do _nothing_ clearly worried Finn more than it worried Poe... He wasn’t sure he liked the responsibility, for starters.

"That's the point. He'll be able to move, some, but it'll hurt—just enough. He _likes_ being helpless with us. He trusts us to keep him safe," Rey said, but seeing that Finn still looked uncertain, added: "How about you ask him?"

Finn glanced uncertainly back at the refresher and then nodded. Poe was, of course, already naked, which made Finn's mouth go dry, and he reached for Poe's shoulder and kissed him softly when he turned around. When they separated, Poe was smiling at him, waiting.

Rey cleared her throat behind them. "Get distracted?" she laughed, which made Finn feel better, a little.

"Y-you try not getting distracted!" he responded, and Rey gave him a deadpan look before he smiled at her and turned to Poe.

"You—you’ll be completely unable to move without hurting yourself. But I know that's kind of the idea...?" Finn asked. He needed to hear it from Poe.

Poe heard them whispering in the other room, and though his first instinct was to call the whole thing off (because of course Finn had to be upset or freaked out at something he _enjoyed_ ) (which wasn't fair, another part of him scolded himself, because Finn already conceded a lot, and Rey, too, just for him) (he was spoiled, really, it felt like they did everything for him sometimes), but Finn was _trying_ , so it wasn't going to help if Poe backed off every time Finn was hesitant.

"Yeah, Finn, I will," he said, taking Finn's hands and kissing his knuckles. And he was trying to play it smooth and cool because Finn needed him to be smooth and cool but really his stomach was tying itself up in knots with desire and shame and not wanting Finn to do anything he didn’t want to do and trying to figure out how to convince him it was okay and even though it was weird it wasn’t _that_ weird and he wanted this—all while trying to make it seem like not a big deal, so Finn wouldn’t do it just to avoid disappointing him. "And—I really don't want you to feel pressured into this, buddy—but I'm also really—excited about it. It feels good, I've—ah, done that one before, and it really—it can get me there. But! I don't—if it weirds you out, if there's First Order stuff, or you think it’s _ugly_ , like, if it doesn't do it for you, aesthetically, or you don't trust me to—it’s—if you'll just—it’s really fine if I—" Now he was just a disaster.

" _Poe_ ," Rey said, feeling the need to step in, because all signs of Poe's arousal were gone and he was looking like he wanted to run, and she had never heard him stammer through so many half-sentences before. "Just tell him that you want it. That's all he asked. He's _concerned_ , not _uninterested_. Right, Finn? You'd tell us if you didn't want to do this, right?"

"Yes! Of course I'd tell you. And if we get into it and it's a problem I'll tell you, but—I want to try. And not just for you," he said to Poe, because he didn't need to be a mind-reader to know what Poe was thinking. "And not just for Rey. _I_ want to do this, too. I just need a little reassurance, okay? I trust you, but hearing you actually say it's what you want...it puts my mind at ease so I can enjoy it." Finn sighed and kissed Poe, taking his time and unsure if he was doing it for Poe's benefit or his. He took a deep breath. "Seeing you helpless freaks me out a little. But not so much that I want to stop this before we've even tried," he added hastily.

"I...yeah," Poe said, easing his arms around Finn, melting gratefully into his calming strength. "And I'll be reassuring you every step of the way, I promise." He paused, winced almost. "I mean, does it...is it too soon? Like, okay, the only time you've seen me like that, in handcuffs or whatever, it's been bad. It's been First-Order-stormtroopers-Kylo-Ren bad." Poe was trying to keep it together, sure his face was doing something that made Finn look nervous. "And—me, too, a little. But I like it, I do, or I did once, and I really don't want _them_ taking away something I enjoy. That's what this is for me, you know? Not letting them win. And—having a great time with my affianced, letting—letting you guys take...care of...me?" He said this last part a little uncertainly. He wasn’t good at being taken care of, didn’t want to be a burden (certainly not in the bedroom where he, with the most experience, had an obligation to be an active participant making sure everyone was having a good time), and for the most part he didn’t _like_ to be taken care of. It was probably weird that he only liked it like _this_.

"It's partly that,” Finn admitted. “But I don't want them to take that away from us, not when otherwise it would be alright." He was suddenly very, very tired of the First Order continuing to affect almost everything he did and felt and thought. He was so tired of it he could have cried, but he realized that this was a chance to—snap out of it? Give the First Order the finger? Whatever it was, he heaved a huge sigh. "I'm so _kriffing_ tired of having the ghost of the First Order in my head." He closed his eyes and let the water run down his face for a moment. "You know what? Fuck the First Order." He would learn this, slowly. And maybe it'd help get this First Order poison out of his life. That wasn't his reality anymore—this was. "I love you, and I’m doing this for _us_ ," he said fiercely.

"Yeah?" Poe said, and then snorted, like he wasn't sure why he said that. "I love you, too." They stared at each other for a moment.

Rey sighed a little dreamily: there was that glint in Finn's eyes, the one that took control of his own destiny, was strong in his convictions, and was determined to do the right thing no matter how scared he was—and Poe, Poe looked like he had just been rescued from certain death and told he got to fly a TIE fighter to boot: bright eyed and deeply grateful and a little bit wicked. They were looking at each other so beautifully and the tension was out of Finn's shoulders and Poe had his palms turned up in Finn's hands and they were both _hers_.

"But shower first. I do insist on that part," Rey said, breaking the silence, and they both laughed.

They crowded into the refresher (they couldn't get up to much in here if they tried, disappointingly) (how the hell did _Chewie_ even get in here?!) but Poe didn't mind when Finn had his hands in his hair. It helped him relax, warming and soothing him. Rey and Finn drew him out and helped him dry off, and Rey scrubbing a towel over his head felt _really_ good. They finished getting ready for bed, touching and kissing gently, and when they moved to the bed Rey propped up the datapad and pulled a long coil of rope out from under the bed.

It startled a laugh out of Poe. "You got the good stuff!" he exclaimed, running his hands over the synthetic silk.

"Well, I did research," she said, setting out lube, Poe's sex toys (she had brought them without Poe and Finn’s knowledge, apparently), and six bottles of water. "And all the other rope was scratchy. You ready?"

Poe glanced between Rey and Finn before nodding firmly.

"We want verbal confirmation when we ask you anything, okay, Poe?" Rey said, her voice taking a sudden hard edge.

"Yeah. Yes, I'm definitely ready," he blurted out.

Finn reached out to touch the rope and raised his eyebrows in surprise. "It's soft!" he said, and Rey grinned.

"Well yeah! The idea is to tie him up, not cut him with rope," she said. Finn looked over at Poe and smiled wickedly. "I'll show you the knots, and you can help. Or you can kiss Poe for me and keep him quiet."

"Sounds tough," Finn said with a small laugh. He took Poe's hands and gently kissed good fingers before handing them off to Rey.

Poe laughed, flushing slightly when Finn kissed his fingers. "You know I'm kinda getting mixed signals, here. You want verbal confirmation but you also want him to 'kiss me quiet’? I mean, what's a guy to think?" he teased.

Rey responded by drawing his hands behind his back. "Okay, so we start at the wrists, right? Then we go up to the elbows and then the shoulders, if you want."

Poe nodded, clasping his hands together behind him so she could bind his wrists with his palms facing. "Yeah," he said, craning his neck around to see. "Shoulders are good. A little safer, I think. More comfortable, spreads the weight out a little more."

"Finn, would you start testing the pipes above our head? We want a good strong one to hold his weight," Rey asked, as she got the hang of the knots (they were harder than they looked, but she was determined). "Doing okay, Poe?"

"Yeah, except Finn's crotch in my face is kind of unfairly tempting right now," he said, grinning up at Finn as he hung on a pipe to test its load-bearing ability. "Reeeeeyyyyy now he's doing pull-ups!" Poe whined.

"You're not very good at being quiet, are you?" Finn asked brightly, dropping back to the bed so he could spend some time kissing Poe into the promised silence. When they paused for breath, he gazed into Poe's eyes. "How about you only talk if Rey asks a question or you need to because something is wrong?" he suggested.

Poe raised an eyebrow. "How about if _you_ ask me a question?" he asked, and tried leaning in for a nipping kiss, biting Finn's lip gently.

"Stop _moving_!" Rey said, and grunted in frustration.

"Sorry!" Poe said. "And, ah, you can go tighter. I really am more flexible than I look," Poe suggested.

" _Hush_. Finn, get over here, I'm missing something," Rey said, waving the datapad in his face.

Finn dutifully shifted to help Rey with the knots. But they were complex and there were too many of them, and he kept fumbling with them. He was going to tie them wrong and trap Poe in them or hurt him and screw all of this up. "Dammit, I can't—I’m trying but I'm doing it wrong!" he said in frustration.

"Hey, hey, it's okay," Poe said, hearing the distress in Finn's voice and whipping his head around, ignoring the no-talking rule. And Finn looked like he was about two steps from freaking out, so Poe was stammering excuses before he knew what he was doing: "It's fine. We can stop there, that's good, I promise. You guys." He tugged slightly, but Rey only growled at him.

"Finn, calm him down and shut him up," she said. "Oh, it goes _under_..." she realized, now working quickly, the ropes drawing his forearms together. He _wanted_ to hiss at that, as it tugged on his shoulders _perfectly_ , drawing his elbows together so they almost touched—but he wasn't sure how Finn would react.

"Rey, seriously. I don't want—Finn, buddy—it’s okay, I'm okay, please stay with me..." he begged, trying to find Finn's eyes.

"Poe, stop. Just—be quiet for a second, I'm sorry," Finn said, but that didn't really help when Poe continued watching him. It made it _worse_. "Stop... Looking at me, just—" He didn't want Poe seeing every little uncertainty that crossed his face. That would make this impossible. "Hey,” he said suddenly. “I want you to wear a blindfold. So you can't see when I'm…nervous? It's making you nervous and that makes me more nervous and..."

"And then you both freak each other out.” Rey nodded. “How about it, Poe?" Rey asked, putting a soothing hand on Finn's shoulder and testing the ropes around Poe's arms very gently.

Poe bit his lip, brows creased together, but he took a careful breath and nodded. "Anything," he said, at first, anything that would help—even though—he was a pilot, not being able to see was _scary_ —but he could handle it, he would handle it—and the more he thought about it the more he was sure he would actively like it. He managed a huff: "Knew you had a secret kinky side," he said, and grinned, eyes still tracking Finn as he moved around the room to look for something suitable.

"Wiggle your fingers," Rey said, and Poe obeyed. "Good. Now, how tight can we go, here, really?" she said, and pulled one end of the rope, all but drawing his elbows together.

"Ah—hnuh," Poe grunted. "Let me—hang on—" he said, and he couldn't _help_ but look at Finn, an unspoken, but loudly-thought: _as tight as_ he’s _comfortable with?_ that wasn’t what she wanted to hear.  

"Okay, blindfold first," Rey said, seeing how this was going. "It's supposed to heighten the senses anyway, so that will be fun. Finn, I think I have a scarf in that box."

Finn dug in the indicated box until he found the scarf and held it up. "Let me know if it's too tight," he said after he'd climbed back on the bed and was crouched behind Poe. He drew the scarf over his eyes and tied it in the back. "Now we'll be okay. It's all okay," he said. He bent forward to kiss his neck and rested his forehead against Poe's shoulder.

Poe sucked in a breath as darkness settled around him. It instantly narrowed his focus, and that surprised him: his world was his own body and how it interacted with Rey and Finn and rope. Nothing else. "Um. Kriff," he gasped, surprised by how much he liked this. "Wow.”  

“Good idea?” Finn asked, biting his lip hopefully.

“ _Good_ idea,” Poe agreed. “ _Finn_ ," he moaned, leaning into his touch.

"That's it, we've got you," Rey said, her voice sounding different now that he couldn't see and her voice had all his focus. "Now, I'm going to tighten these up a bit—" she cinched him so suddenly both Poe and Finn gasped, and Poe dropped his head to Finn’s shoulder.

"Good, that's good, no more." Maybe when he was twenty-four his elbows touched in the back, but not anymore. He felt Rey tying off, creating a spacer between his elbows for stability. Oh, she was a natural at this.

Rey beamed. She was getting the hang of this! And Poe probably wasn't aware of the soft little noises he was making that were very encouraging and didn't start until Finn had blindfolded him. " _Good idea_ ," she whispered, and kissed Finn's cheek.

Finn felt along Poe's arms, brushing fingers over his muscles where they pulled taut, gently stroking along the inside of his elbows. "We've got you. You're alright," he crooned. He just wanted to make Poe feel safe and sound and happy, taken care of and loved.

And maybe Finn enjoyed this a little more than he thought he would. He looked over at Rey and then leaned toward her for a kiss, which Rey happily gave him. She held his chin and kissed him until he, too, was making soft moaning sounds.

"The two of you are wonderful, and I love you, and you're going to be so good," she told him, and he nodded.

Poe sucked in a breath when Finn touched him like that, feeling the alternating rope and skin, and he tried to crane his neck around to see how he liked it, but all that did was make the ends of the scarf tickle his shoulders. He made a soft pleading noise as he listened to them kiss, doing his best to remember not to talk, and shifted his legs, pulling a knee up in front of him.

"Shh," Rey whispered, and ran her fingers up through the back of his hair until he sighed and let his head fall back. "Going to do your shoulders," she explained, and made two thick loops that drew his shoulder blades together and took some of the pressure off his elbows. "Good?" she checked. "Wiggle your fingers."

Poe twitched his fingers and even made a fist. "Good," he answered, feeling himself slide deeper into the velvety darkness where he didn't need to be in charge. He felt her rub his shoulders.

"All right. Good boy." Rey turned to Finn with the same question. "Good?"

Finn nodded, more relaxed now that he knew he had some space to be nervous without upsetting Poe. He glanced over at Rey and then leaned into Poe's space and kissed a line across his shoulders, stopping briefly to nuzzle at his neck. There was something strangely artistic, even beautiful, about the contrast of the rope against Poe's tattoos, and the curve of his neck and spine as he held very still, somewhere between relaxed and strained. "You're beautiful even when you're tied up," he whispered in Poe's ear, and then looked over at Rey, who was distributing some knots that she'd tied too close together. "And you're an artist, love. It's—it’s _pretty_ ," he finally managed. He chuckled at the clear confusion in his voice. The First Order—for all their pomp and circumstance and fascist-chic aesthetic—could never have made such a beautiful thing.

" _Even_ when?" Poe teased, but he was half on his way to melting into those words and those touches. He _really_ liked it when Finn or Rey called him beautiful, or pretty, and he wished he could see Rey's work but he was positive it was much more fun being _in_ it.

Leaving one hand still holding the ropes that bound Poe at the elbows, Rey snaked an arm around Finn, to hold him and kiss him. "Thanks," she said. "I still like your handiwork the best, though," she said, touching the blindfold. "Maybe we try that on you next time? "

Poe's head shot up. " _Oh_ yeah!"

"Hush now, I thought Finn said no talking?" she said, and gave Finn the end of the rope. "Can you swing that up over the pipe, darling?" she asked, with another kiss.

Finn stood, a little awkwardly wobbly on the uneven footing of the bed, and tossed the end of the rope over the pipe he'd been doing pull-ups on earlier. "I like the view from here," he said with a soft laugh, and sat back down next to Poe. "Good?" he asked as he handed the rope back to Rey.

"Yeah," Poe said, mainly to be cheeky, because he was 99% sure that question was not directed at him.

"Yup," Rey said. "And you're lucky I need you to talk, Poe," she growled, threading the end of the rope through the knots at his wrists and pulling. "Okay, how high do we go?" Though Rey had had a guess, it really did seem like Poe was more flexible than she thought—but he still probably wasn’t as flexible as the model in the holo.

"Whoa, okay," Poe said, as an insistent pull drew his arms up behind him. He scrambled to sitting on his haunches, gasping at the sharp, painful stretch, and Rey stopped. "No, higher. You can go higher. Just need a second to get used to it."

"You sure?" Rey said, and pulled him up a few inches. Poe got up on his knees, taller and leaner than she had ever thought he could possibly look. He bent over, slightly, now, at the waist.

"Higher," he begged.

Finn wasn't sure it would be a good thing if they went higher, given that Poe already looked strained and tense, his body bent at an awkward angle and head forward. He was sucking in short breaths and making soft noises that sounded, to Finn, like pained whimpers, but when Finn glanced at Rey, she smiled encouragingly and reached over to hold his hand briefly. Her intent was clear— _take a moment and calm down; it’s okay_ —and when some of the tension left his shoulders she moved their hands to Poe's neck and ran their fingers through his hair.

"Poe, we're going to stay here for a moment, and if you're good, we can go higher in a minute, she said kindly, taking control of the situation.

"Kay," Poe whispered, for some reason afraid to speak loudly, like he might spook them or himself.

Rey let Finn's hand go and draped herself gently against Poe’s back, under his arms, scratching at his ribs none-too-gently and kissing his shoulder.

And about then, Finn's mouth went dry, and he just wanted to reach for them.

"Come here," Rey told him, and drew him up to her, guiding his hand to Poe's ribs.

Poe gulped as Rey kissed his side, the vulnerable skin that hadn't been tattooed, and sighed, hanging a little looser in the tie. His shoulders felt _good_ right now, actually, stretching out the stress of piloting in a way that no stretch or exercise could ever give him. He drew in a sharp breath when Finn touched him, ribs and belly expanding, and "Yes," he moaned, turning blind eyes toward Finn like he would be able to see him. He straightened, stretching his arms more, and grunted softly, trying to choke back the sound.

"Yes, you'll be good?" Finn asked, scratching his nails along Poe's ribs. He was entranced by this quiet, biddable version of Poe, his soft voice and quick breaths. "What do you think, Rey? Can he be good?" he asked.

"Stars, yes," Poe gasped, arching into the touch, and Rey giggled and grabbed him around the middle, grinning at Finn from the other side.

"I think he's being pretty good—but, you know, we still haven't punished him for not telling us about his toy stash," she said, and nipped his jaw, which made him hiss and pull into her. There was something amazingly satisfying about how he swung on the ropes, always shifting as he tried and failed to find a comfortable position, his frustration building. She pointed to the assortment of toys. "Should we use them on him? Or should we play with them ourselves and make him listen to us?" Rey asked Finn, and at that Poe started and snapped his head up.

"Hey! Th-that's not fair." He shifted again, bowing his back again.

"Hmmmm...we could do both." Finn sat back on his heels and looked thoughtfully at the toys on Rey's bed. He touched Poe's shoulder. "Think you'd like that?"

Poe made an incoherent, strangled sound. "Yes, fuck," he said, and Rey smiled.

"Good. I think we should start with this one for Poe, and this one?" She said, holding up the cock ring and the vibrator. "That should keep him busy while we kiss and cuddle. You know how the more innocent and tame we are, the more it drives him wild?" She leaned against Poe, raking her fingernails down his thighs, making him hiss. "And I can tell you all about the time I tried the vibrator on myself—until he loses his mind, or speaks, and risks getting in even more trouble." Rey's eyes sparkled with mischief.

"I like that plan," Finn purred. "Also, I’m sorry, you did what when?" he asked softly, and Rey have him a blinding smile.

"You know, just because I don't especially feel the need to involve you two doesn't mean I don't get curious," she told him, and he raised his eyebrows at her. "It was…nice. Like when I can feel you two, but...more, I guess. Not once-removed." She was thoughtful, almost, flipping the vibrator over and over in her hands.

"You're going to make Poe cry," Finn laughed, then peppered her face with kisses, just loud enough that Poe could hear.

"Hnuh?" Poe said, which wasn't technically a word and couldn't be held against him but seriously? Seriously? And now that he couldn't see all he could do was imagine them kissing, and imagine Rey being "curious" with her hands between her legs, with _his_ vibrator—that meant they had practically fucked, right? By proxy?—and it just wasn’t fair! He had remembered cleaning the toys the next day and not recalling having used the vibrator at all—when it had been Rey! After they had gone to sleep?

"Holy shit, that wasn't _my_ dream that night, it was yours!" he exclaimed, lifting his head. He had dreamed of he and Finn both in handcuffs and Rey “taking care” of born of them...

And then there was a sudden sharp tug on his hair, wrenching his head back and bringing tears to his eyes behind the blindfold.

"I'm not joking about you keeping quiet, and I'm not joking about your punishment if you speak again," Rey was hissing, harsh as lightning in his ear. "That pretty mouth is too dangerous not to be controlled. So you watch it, or I will."

And sure his Force-wielding fiancée grabbing his hair and putting him in his place was just an embarrassing reason to spring a raging hard-on, but there you go.

Poe had barely got himself under control—he had forgotten how to _breathe_ when she did that, the first rush of real adrenaline spiking through him—when he felt her move behind him, fiddle with the ropes, and now he was tugged higher until he cried out. _Oh yes fuck yes this_ , he groaned. "Sorry, I'm sorry," he whispered, hanging his head. "Thank you.”

But Finn went suddenly very still, frozen halfway to panic, his brain telling him two things at once. Grateful that Poe couldn’t overhear the clamor (even though Rey might), he sat and had a silent argument with himself, logic telling instinct to shut the hell up, and instinct sounding the alarm like every siren on base had turned on at once. Poe was fine, he told himself, and Poe wanted this, even though he looked like he was in pain, was shaky like he'd been when Finn had freed him from the torture rig on the Finalizer. And Rey would not hurt him—not more than he wanted, and certainly she wouldn't _injure_ him, and she wasn't actually angry at him. But she'd sounded so much, then, like those who tortured information from broken prisoners (like Poe would have become, if Finn hadn't gone for him, twice).

So he tried to talk himself down, made himself stop and think, tried to make himself be present _here_ so he wouldn't get stuck _there_. He only partially succeeded, and he threw Rey a look, begging her to—to slow down, to give him time to think himself back to that calmly defiant space he'd been in earlier.

Rey winced, immediately aware that she had gone too far too fast for Finn, and deeply torn because she saw how it had affected Poe. What Poe liked best scared Finn the most, and that was a conundrum.

"Hey," Rey said, suddenly, turning around, taking both Finn's hands. "Finn, my love, look at me. He's okay. You're okay." Her eyes suddenly took on their own haunting. "Don't—go where I can't follow," she begged, touching his face, and then her gaze was hard again. "Poe, tell him," she said, and Poe wasn't sure if it was permission or an order (or a fear that things were spiraling out of control and she needed his help to stop them?):

A cold stab of fear brought Poe out of whatever he had been enjoying out of this, just as suddenly as he had been plunged into it, but he held onto a tendril, wanting, aching to slip back in—only not now. Not when Finn needed him. "Finn," Poe said, struggling against the knots for the first time, "I'm okay, buddy. I'm here with you and Rey and—Finn? Finn, c'mere, please. Touch me? Kiss me? Tell me—talk to me. Please? T-tell me what's wrong?" Part of him felt ridiculous trying to comfort Finn when he was trussed up like this, but he had certainly been in more embarrassing situations before...

"I—you just looked—Gods-kriffing-dammit, I hate them, they're still ruining every good thing we have," Finn said, frustrated almost to tears and still shaky and nervous and he _knew_ everything was fine. He couldn't even explain it because it was too much, there were too many conflicting feelings kicking around in his head.

"Finn. Breathe." Rey put her hands on his cheeks and rested her forehead against his. "Show us?" she asked, so Finn did, letting Rey, and Poe through her, into the chaos of confused connections, real only to him, between what they were doing and what had been done in the past—to Poe, to other stormtroopers, to captured prisoners.

"I know we're okay. It surprised me, and I forgot that for a second, and...and I panicked." He looked down at his hands in his lap. _Way to kill the mood, Finnegan..._ "But I don't want to stop. I don't. I want this for us, so much, I just...it's hard shutting off the other things."

" _Finn_ ," Poe begged, leaning in as much as he was able. "Take the blindfold off me, please, just for a second, sweetheart. Want you to see me." And when things were suddenly bright, Finn's clever fingers nudging the blindfold up into his hair, Poe smiled. "Come here," he whispered, and when Finn slowly brought his arms around him, Poe nuzzled against his neck, pressing kisses to the spot behind his ear that calmed him, calmed them both. "You feel this, darling?" he asked. "All this right here, it feels good for me. And it's all yours, it's all _you_ , Finno. Got me?" He drew back, swinging slightly, and met Finn's eyes. "The First Order scares me. You're not that. You don't scare me, not even a little. We're just playing around, okay? And we can still stop—I can stop us, if things get too rough—I _will_. You can stop us if things get too real. And Rey can stop us if she thinks we're a pair of nerfherders who can't handle this, huh?" he gave Finn a small smile and turned to wink at Rey.

Finn nodded, slowly, determined, but didn’t say anything.

Rey slid over on her knees until she could wrap her arms around both of them. "We okay here? You call the shots, Finn," she said. "We can go slow as you want."

"Maybe not _that_ slow," Poe teased, and then grew serious. “Please...will you…get inside me?" he whispered. “I want you to feel—I want Finn to know it’s all right—”

Rey was petting his hair, soothing him, now. "Shh, okay, it’s all right."

"Um, I might just stay here for a minute, where I can think?" Finn asked, "But please don't stop on my account." He shifted until he was sitting comfortably, near them, but separate for the moment. _Yep, the asexual is currently more comfortable with sex than I am…_

Poe laughed, trying to lighten the mood: "You're going to leave me alone with the wicked scavenger?" he squeaked at Finn. "Kidding, joking, loves," he added, just to be sure. He wanted Finn to feel comfortable with this more than he wanted anything.

Rey smiled and kissed Finn. “Take as long as you want,” she said, then went back to Poe, concentrated, and then she was inside him.

The first rush of Rey in his head almost frightened Poe, she was so eager, and then Finn was there, too, a bit removed, and Poe managed a breath. Already his arms were aching, and breathing took a great deal of effort, and his thighs and abs shook with the effort of holding him up in a way that wasn't painful. He was determined to be very good and they had barely touched him.

And Rey liked this change, and she smiled at Finn, who liked it, too, almost in spite of himself. She wasn't sure what part of her was broken but Poe really did look _good_ like this, angles of shining skin and trembling, straining knots. He was trying to keep it together, worry still tinging the edges of his desire, but he was still and waiting, heart pounding. Needing, but waiting. Independent made dependent. It was beautiful.

"I think we'll slow down just enough to drive you really crazy,” Rey told him, “to make you want to beg us to go faster. And you'll be so good, you won't beg even though you'll want to—need to."

Gods, part of Poe really wanted to know what happened if he was bad, but he nodded, pressing his lips together.

She brushed her fingers lightly down his side and stopped at his waist. "How's that sound, my love? Think you'd like me to go ahead and use this?" she asked, holding up the ring in the hand that wasn't on his waist.

Poe was suddenly totally arrested by Rey's attention, her beautiful promises and threats. Her presence was so powerful he almost forgot to worry about Finn—and maybe she was doing that on purpose. "Um. N-not really?" he tried with a shaky grin, though of course he _did_ want her to, he was just hoping she would get the difference between that and an actual safeword-no.

Rey took a minute to study him, feel him through the Force, and then she smiled wickedly. "I don't like your tone, pretty boy," Rey said, giggling still, and she slid the ring over his cock (it was still very confused about whether to be aroused or not, but the ring cinching around his base answered that question), and he gasped. It was definitely tighter than he remembered, and he shivered, getting another spike of adrenaline as his body realized the totality of his helplessness. Rey smiled, satisfied at that reaction, and pulled the blindfold back over Poe's eyes and kissed him.

"I've half a mind to strip you for parts. Give me one good reason, and I'll do it," she purred into his ear, making Poe gasp softly. "Speaking privileges revoked—unless you want to hear him beg, Finn?" she checked.

"Maybe he doesn't have to be _completely_ silent." Finn liked the little sounds Poe made without seeming to realize he was making them—could anyone have blamed him, really?—and he wanted to hear them. He wanted to hear that Poe was enjoying himself, that he was desperate for more. And, he admitted privately to himself, there was something about controlling Poe’s speech, taming that silver tongue (knowing Poe was letting them have that power over him), that made him feel like he had control over the whole world.

"You should probably thank him for taking pity on you," Rey told Poe with a wicked grin. "I'd have made you be silent." She put her hands on his shoulders, rubbing them a little less than gently, once or twice finding a spot that made Poe's whole body go tense. Finn took a breath as she smoothed her hands down Poe's arms, seemingly searching for more places to pinch or press to make Poe react.

Poe huffed at that, still smiling, loving, _loving_ that they could do this now. He was still nervous about letting himself slip under again, wanting to make sure Finn was okay, though Rey was doing an admirable job of making him forget everything but her fingers. Despite her promise, she was taking him apart already, piece by piece, and every touch earned a hiss or moan—sometimes both—and an occasional giggle. He flexed and shifted again, tipping forward. He wanted—he _really_ wanted—something for his mouth to do, because not being allowed to provide running commentary was slowly driving him insane, and also it had been minutes since he had his mouth on either of them and that was a travesty. He was just thinking about breaking the silence to ask for something— _make_ her shut him up—when she found an actual pressure point just under his hip and dug her tiny sharp fingers in—

"Holy fuck!" Poe cried in surprise, his whole body electrified, bouncing on the ends of the rope, adrenaline flooding down (up?) to his fingertips because that nearly made him see stars, even with the blindfold on. "Fuck fuck _kriff_ do that again," he whined.

This time, Rey was open to it, open to both of them, and that endorphin rush crashed into her and she shared it with Finn, who suddenly sat up and looked _very_ interested. Poe had gone limp, hanging and panting and _whining_ , which was a noise she didn't hear him make a lot (oh, he whined for attention and when he didn't get to choose what holovid they watched, but not like this, not that high-pitched desperate little cry for help in the back of his throat like an animal). It set off every protective and possessive instinct she had—and also a few more that wanted to hear him make that noise _again_. Louder.

"Mm, not s'posed to talk, remember, darling?" she hummed, and raked her fingernails down his spine, making him arch and cry out again beautifully. "What are we going to do with you?" She peered at Finn over Poe's shoulder, eyes sparkling with invitation.

Finn licked his lips nervously and then slid closer to them. "Look, here, there's a pressure point—" he said, running his hand down Poe's thigh to just above his knee and then pressing his knuckle into the side of his leg to see how Poe would react. Finn smiled, suddenly, because here was a thing the First Order had taught them for war, here used to a (mostly) innocent, certainly enjoyable purpose. He wondered what Phasma would think.

Poe gasped. It was like molten metal crawling up his leg, over his ribs, into his lungs, and spreading back out through the base of his spine down to his fingers and toes. "Gods, gods, fuck, oh my gods," he couldn't help but say, he _really_ couldn't, and he shifted and swung from the ceiling in some confused attempt to escape and move into the touch at the same time. "Please, please," he gasped. His mouth had gone entirely dry, and he was sinking _hard_ , barely registering the passage of time or anything that was happening outside of direct contact with his body.

Rey was basking in it, how a spark of pain turned into adrenaline and then pleasure so quickly, and she hoped Finn could feel it, too. She was smiling with all her teeth at Finn. "He feels _good_ , doesn't he?" she hummed, and leaned across Poe to kiss Finn. "Maybe he needs some distraction," she said, holding up the vibrator, but since she was crouched behind him, still, she was already slicking and stretching him with clinical efficiency (Poe didn't quite have the wherewithal to be surprised). "In the meantime, you should show me more of those."

Finn smiled and gave Poe a quick, teasing kiss before he slid his hand up to where his leg and groin met. "There's one right—" he pressed his thumb into the bend of Poe's leg "—here." He let up after a moment and stroked his hand gently down Poe's leg, feeling the shiver there against the strain of continuing to hold himself up. "So good, Poe. You're so good, letting us take care of you," he told him soothingly.

Poe whimpered, running out of enough air and strength to scream properly, another wave of warmth spreading through him, making him feel tingly and weak. Finn's lips were moist and gods, he just wanted _more_ , even though he wasn’t sure he could handle more. He trembled, belly-breathing now because it was getting too hard to expand his chest. Everything was dulling to a nice haze, his tolerance for pain increasing as he slipped deeper, _except_ for his shoulders and arms that were screaming at him, louder and louder with every second.

"Yeah, beautiful," Rey added. "So good." She could get drunk on this, she was pretty sure. She couldn't tell whose good feelings felt better: Poe was drowning in pleasure and ache, Finn felt like he had achieved some kind of breakthrough she didn't quite understand and they would need to talk about later, and Rey herself felt proud and warm and focused.

Rey had just found his prostate, and Poe nearly jumped out of his skin and the ties at once, bumping against Finn's shoulder. Finn held him still, wrapped one arm around the back of his neck and let him rest against his shoulder, and was whispering sweet encouragements in his ear, letting him rest before his wicked clever beautiful fingers found another pressure point.

Poe wasn't sure how they had timed it without seeming to speak it or even think it, but Finn dug one finger into his shoulder, just behind his collar bone (which was open and vulnerable because of how his arms were tied) and Rey finally turned _on_ the vibrator and Poe wasn't sure how he managed enough air to do it but he _screamed_ , rocking back and forth between them as pleasure and adrenaline both spiked again, taking him higher (and now he wasn't sure which direction he was going, up or down or inside-out).

Fuck, his cock, he realized, when the smoke had cleared. He was going to explode and die or else he was going to come in spite of the ring and ruin his orgasm but he wasn't sure he cared. At all.

"Want to suck your cock," he found himself saying, his last coherent thought, though it wasn't that coherent and was actually kind of a non sequitur.

"I’d like that," Finn said, "but not right this second." He gentled Poe, petting his hair and taking some of his weight so he could rest again, while Rey put the vibrator to good use, drawing sounds out of Poe that Finn had never heard before. He tugged his hair to tip his head back and kissed him hard, nipping at his lower lip and groaning softly. Finn _wanted_ this. His body, over its confusion from earlier, had finally decided to respond and he was almost painfully hard. If he just moved a little closer to Poe, just there, he could maybe rub—

"Sit back, Finn," Rey commanded him, and he looked up at her. Poe hadn't said to stop. Finn didn't want to stop—wasn’t this what they wanted? "Sit back, or I'll make you. You’re not allowed to come yet, either," she purred, and there was silky danger in her voice. She could tie Finn up with that voice of hers any time...

He sat back, panting, and grumbled at her anyway just to make a point. It made her laugh. "Oh, don't get cranky with me, love, you _like_ this as much as he likes being tied up," she said, and angled the vibrator for Poe's prostate again. Finn was pretty sure she was getting power drunk, and he loved it as much as he loved how Poe felt right now. This was everything in his world, this moment in this place with these people—everything else had fallen away.

Poe whine at the loss of contact, his shoulders coming together as he sank lower.

Rey switched off the vibrator for a moment. "Poe, I need you to wiggle your fingers for me, sweetheart," she said, and Poe, hearing her voice as though it came to him from far away, nodded and twitched his fingers. "Good, you're so good," she whispered, and it was love, warm and pure, flooding his system now, and he was dizzy with it. And then she turned the toy to its highest setting and nailed his prostate so hard it hurt, holding it there until his scream turned into a low moan.

"Finn, if he's going to manage to come, it needs to happen soon," Rey said. "And then I have something I want to try." Poe lifted his head, unable to form words except in his head: _yes yes please Rey Finn need you please yes yes_.

Finn nuzzled at Poe's cheek and kissed him. "Ready to come for us?" he asked, and fumbled his hand down to touch the ring, his other hand going to the other side of Poe's neck this time. As he flipped the catch on the ring, he dug his thumb in hard behind Poe's collarbone, the reverberation from it through Rey drawing a moan from all of them.

"Guhh—uh-huh," Poe grunted, teetering between too much pleasure and too much pain, and Rey really _had_ done her homework, fuck, he was almost too far gone to actually orgasm and have anything happen—he was honestly too far gone to even be thinking this coherently—and then Finn had a hand on his cock and another hand digging hard into his shoulder, and the spike of pain mixed with the spike of climax so that he _didn't_ really feel it, except as another wave of warmth and comfort and he...just...settled. This. This was good. They were all good.

He could let go.

They had this.

Rey hiccupped, stuck between a short laugh and a small sob, at that. Poe was—well, this probably wasn't _flying_ , yet, but he was almost there, and the peace and surrender that happened after his orgasm was almost better than—no, it just was, far, far better, felt far more beautiful. She kissed his shoulder as Finn held him, and she locked eyes with Finn, whose eyes were shining. "I love you," she whispered. "I love you both so much."

"We've got you, love, we've got you," Finn hummed gently as he stroked up and down Poe's back. "You're so good. You're perfect and beautiful and I love you. Both of you," he said. He would have been happy to cuddle up with them right then, except he was still very hard, and he _had_ told Poe if he was good... "I—" he shifted and winced. "Hey Poe, love, you want to help me with this?" he asked, and Rey giggled.

"I don't think he can right now," she said, and indeed, Poe was just hanging from the ropes, and he looked exhausted. "Get behind him," Rey commanded, and as soon as Finn had moved, she loosened the rope holding Poe up. She let him down until his head almost rested on her knees and pet his hair.

The world swam, dunking Poe deeper into this black ocean, raising him higher into the clouds. Oh, fuck, his head was actually in Rey's lap, and it was so tender and at odds with everything else they were doing that it made the whole thing sweet. And Finn was—oh, gods, yes—

"How about if I tell Finn to take you nice and slow, just to drive him crazy?" she asked, whispering in his ear. Finn, of course, overheard, and his mouth went dry.

"Yeah," Poe moaned, but he would agree to anything now.

Rey was basking in their twin pleasures—in the rush it gave _her_ that they let her give them orders like this! Finn, who had been so good and so patient, so focused on Poe that his own need was sudden and staggering. And Poe, _so_ close to that horizon, which she was almost frightened to help him over, not sure where he would go or what it would feel like or if she could get him back. And they were so achingly beautiful, both of them, it made her almost desirous.

"Okay," she explained to Finn, because she had thought a lot about this, actually, which was probably weird for someone with her preferences, but this wasn't about her. (Except it _was_ all about her, she was literally orchestrating their pleasure for her amusement, and that made her feel a little bit like a god—like—maybe a lust for power wasn't the problem with evil men like Kylo Ren, they only needed an _outlet_ like this, needed the submission of the two people who mattered most in the whole galaxy and to whom she knew she could submit, in turn). "Okay. I want you to use plenty of lubricant," she instructed. "But only one finger. Don't stretch him any more. He's plenty relaxed, and I want him to _feel_ you. You'd like that, won't you, sweetheart?" She had rested Poe's forehead on her knees and was petting the short hairs at the back of his neck, just to watch his skin prickle.

Poe grunted some sort of affirmation, and she crowded a little closer inside him, checking on things he couldn't: how were his arms, did he really need more preparation, did he need to stop or slow down? But all signs said _Go, More, Yes_. She smiled at Finn and shared it with him, because Poe felt so different, so suggestible, so sweet and open. All his walls were down.

And Finn felt _safe_ now, where he hadn't before. Safe from himself, which she wasn’t sure she’d ever known him to feel.

Rey was glad she was here: someone had to keep their head!

"You're going to fuck him very slowly, got it? And he's close, Finn. We're going to hurt him just a little bit more to get him there. Can you find one of those—"

"Pressure points."

"Yeah. Good. And then you can have him to your heart's content. And he'll fly so high and we get to help him back down. Got it?"

Finn chose a different pressure point this time, and while he stretched Poe with just the one finger, he slowly increased the pressure on a point just above where Poe's ribs connected to his spine. When Poe was slicked and practically dripping with lube, Finn paused with the pressure point and slicked himself, whimpering a little as he did so, and then pressed into Poe very slowly, digging his fingers into his back again as he did it. And Poe was just tight enough that it felt _incredible_ , and Finn closed his eyes for a moment to refocus. Rey had told him to go slow, and Poe probably needed him to go slow, and it was probably going to kill him, but he'd do it. Looking up, he sought Rey's eyes, begging for her to get on with whatever she was doing because he needed to _move_ inside of Poe and feel him respond, and it wasn't going to take long for him to come, at this rate.

"Good," Rey purred. "You're so good, so beautiful. I love you both." Now she had a sharp tool of some kind she had found in one of the kits , and she had cleaned and sterilized it, and tested it out on her arm, so that she knew it was sharp but not enough to draw blood, and she found a sensitive spot on Poe's back and started scratching, tracing designs, pressing harder until she got a reaction—not much of one, but he snapped his head up with a cry, and she could see how Finn suddenly froze and hissed, letting her know that he'd clenched around him. "Good. Good, you like that?" she whispered, petting his hair and drawing some more, at that same pressure. It left beautiful raised red marks in his golden skin. "You know there's one name I really don't like seeing on your body, especially if me and Finn’s names aren't marking you somewhere..." she hummed, thoughtful, decided to bring this up when they were all coherent. "Finn, you can move, darling, but don't come until I say." She reached across Poe's back, wanting to hold Finn's hand.

Finn reached for Rey's hand and held onto it like a lifeline as he started moving, forcing himself to go slow. He was shivering, though whether that was from the control necessary to maintain a slow pace or because he had to keep a certain level of balance to not actually injure Poe, he wasn't sure. Poe kept clenching around him and he moaned softly, bowing his head to his chest and remembering to breathe. He rolled his hips and adjusted his angle just a little until he found Poe's prostate, and this time when he shivered it was definitely because his body was all over heat and fire, and all he wanted was to go faster, harder, to draw a climax out of both of them, preferably, and to feel that light-as-air feeling that he knew they could give Poe. He squeezed Rey's hand and stroked down Poe's side, his breath catching as he thrust again, slowing his rhythm before Rey could command him to. He was rewarded with a sunny smile.

"Good, that's good, you're both so good. Not quite yet, Finn, I didn't say you could come yet, did I?" she asked. Finn raised his eyes to her and she saw a carefully held wildness there, and she thought for a moment he might disobey her, because he liked disobeying orders as much as he liked obeying, sometimes. But though he half bared his teeth at her, he shook his head. "Good. You're doing so well. I know it's killing you, and I know you love that it's killing you, sweetheart, even if you did just growl at me." Finn nodded, words almost lost as he concentrated on holding himself just this side of an orgasm.

Kriff, but he loved these two. He would do anything, move heaven and earth and stars for them. He'd die for them, which was good, because Rey was probably going to be the death of him.

What Poe knew anymore was very limited, for he was reduced to feeling, saturated with pleasure and discomfort and metallic-sharp pain that he tasted like copper in his mouth. He didn't have much of a purpose in life but to be fucked, in a very passive sense, trembling with overstimulation as these things just happened _to_ him. And it felt suddenly good to let go. Type-A sleep-when-I'm-dead Poe Dameron felt good letting go, and he welcomed the way Finn grabbed his hips hard enough to bruise and ploughed him hard enough to make him scream, he welcomed the smell of Rey's thighs and her hands or—something sharp—trying to claw his back off. Part of him knew (though he was quickly losing the part of him that had the capacity to know anything higher than animal hindbrain instinct) what name she was after, was scratching out hard enough to bleed, and if anyone was going to scrape that name off his body it should be her, and let her carve her mark in its place. He followed this thought down its rabbit-hole to where he would get Finn and Rey's names tattooed on his body (not his back, never his back, he was going to die well before them, and he didn't care how selfish that was), maybe on his wedding ring finger, or on the insides of his arms, or—

The last burst of pain surprised him, therefore, for he had gone numb to everything else, and it was either sweat or blood running down his spine where she had killed that name on his back, and then what flooded through him was hot now, instead of warm, and it settled in his limbs like lead as it cooled, and Poe was flying.

"Come for me, Finn," Rey commanded, suddenly, her eyes bright and fierce in victory. Poe was—just—gone—but in a good way: it really was like he had just taken off and was flying and beautiful and free and would come back to them when he was ready. "You're so beautiful, Finn, I love you, love it when you growl at me and do what I say, anyway," she teased. "You're _so_ good, so handsome, I love you. I love you. Come for me now. I've got you." And suddenly she had moved, was now behind Finn, cradling him, kissing him, scratching him gently, ready to welcome him into her arms.

It was a lucky thing that Rey was there to hold him when he finally came, because his legs shuddered and he lost his balance with a cry that was almost feral. For a moment, he thought he might pass out, but then Rey was scratching his arm again, and telling him over and over how good he was and how much she loved him and that she had him and he was okay. And he was, until he pulled out of Poe and reached to stroke down his back and his across his shoulders. Poe was so still, so—relaxed, almost, hanging slack in the ropes and no longer even trying to hold himself up, and Finn was sure for a split second that something was wrong.

"Shh, Finn, love, can you feel him?" Rey asked, and he stopped panicking to feel for Poe's presence.

"He's...still? And quiet." It was a little like the time they'd fucked in the supply closet, but magnified. Way better than that. He wasn’t _gone_ so much as he was wide open, more _theirs_ than _him_.

"He's flying, I think. You did it," Rey said sweetly. " _We_ did it," she amended, and shifted so Finn was leaning against her chest, picking up where she'd left off gently scratching his arm.

"Can we get him down?" Finn asked, not wholly comfortable with being comfortable with Poe just hanging there.

"Yeah. Wanted to make sure you were okay first," she said, and kissed him. "My Finn. You're incredible," she told him, and he smiled as she moved from behind him to begin loosening the rope that held Poe suspended.

"My Rey—my brilliant sunshine. I love you so much," he replied, and went to hold Poe's head in his lap, gently removing the blindfold and brushing through his tangled hair with his fingers. "And you, I'll tell you how amazing you are when you're coherent enough to understand," he said.

Rey helped Finn settle comfortably, and lowered Poe on top of him, covering them both with a blanket she kept to hand. She gave a pouch of water to Finn, bidding him drink, before peeling back the blanket and working on the knots, freeing Poe's shoulders, arms, and wrists, and laying them out to get blood flowing again. All was still, and quiet, the work mesmerizing her. Poe's breath came in short, shallow pants, and he was limp and unmoving, head pillowed on Finn's thigh, his hair sweat-drenched and sticking to Finn's skin and the back of his neck. She ran her fingers through Poe's hair, humming absently.

"Are you comfortable there?" Rey asked once this was done, lifting her eyes to Finn, but trailing a hand down Poe's spine. She hadn't quite drawn blood attempting to scratch out Kylo Ren's former name, but it was an angry red now. Poe didn't seem to feel it. Finn was shaking faintly, from exertion or exhaustion, and she leaned across to kiss him. "Want me to help you lie down?"

Finn smiled meekly. "Yes, please," he said, because if he tried to do it himself he would probably disturb Poe, who was so content in his lap, so trusting and loose-limbed that Finn nearly cried as he continued running his hand through his hair. "Want you, too," he told Rey, sounding small.

Rey hummed. "Okay, love. And don't worry, you won't disturb him—I don't think," she said, helping ease Poe onto a pillow so that she could gather Finn into her arms. For a moment the world narrowed to just the two of them, and she rested Finn's head on her chest, against her heartbeat, and she wrapped her arms and legs around them. "Are you okay? Was that okay? I mean—you were amazing, and we don't...have to talk about it now. We can just—enjoy. But--I didn't expect— _Poe_ certainly didn't expect..."

"The First Order is still in—in here," Finn said, tapping his head. "The ghost of them." He sighed softly. "I'm tired of them taking things—ruining things. Things that are _mine_ that they've no right to touch," he growled. Rey scratched softly at his arm. "So I took it back." And he was under no illusion that it was something he'd only do once. For all he knew, he'd be fighting it the rest of his life.

But right now, he had Poe and Rey and everything was alright. He felt good. There were no battles to be fought right now.

Rey nodded. "Yeah." She paused. "But what was that... _for_? I mean, supposed to be for, to them? Those pressure points. You don't have to talk about it. I'm just...morbidly curious, I guess," she huffed, pressing her nose into Finn's hair and wrapping her legs around him.

"It was for hurting people. So they couldn't fight, or because they had information." He leaned his head back into her hand and hummed, and okay maybe there was something to that nonsense Rey and Poe had insisted on that he _purred_ when he was happy. "But I can use them to make Poe happy. And they're meant not to injure, so they're safe."

"Good. That's—you’re amazing, Finn. It was—really perfect." Rey beamed, and squeezed him impossibly tighter, like a snake coiled around him. "Mm, I love you, so much. Do you need anything? Are you hungry?" she asked, running her fingernails lightly over his chest and arms. "I was going to get everyone cleaned up, too." But she didn't want to move just yet. Everything was _perfect_. She kind of wanted to duck back into Poe's head, to float with him, completely void of worry (open, completely vulnerable and viewable), but she also wanted to be here with Finn.

"You could stay here a little while longer?" Finn requested, shifting enough that he could nuzzle against Rey's arm, reveling in being taken care of, loved, the sole object of attention—not that he would ever begrudge either of his loves the attention of the other, but sometimes it was nice to be the focus. He pet Poe's hair some more and glanced down at his sleepy content face. "I didn't realize how much you'd read," he said to Rey, reaching up to take her hand. "You were amazing, holding us both, telling us what to do..." He smiled sheepishly. "Keeping us from having meltdowns. I like it when you're bossy. It's safe."

Rey shrugged. "Yeah, I read a lot. And it was just as amazing as—no, _more_ amazing with you two than I thought it could be. Anyway, it's easier to figure out than the Force," she laughed. "I like it when you take orders, because you're so good at giving them all the time. I...see how people respect you, and it—when you do it for me, I know you respect me, of course, but—you _trust_ me. I like that. I...need that." She needed their trust as much as she needed to be able to trust them. "Okay, I'm going to get up and clean you two up..." she declared, and rolled Finn until he was pressed against Poe, and she wiped them clean and tucked them in together.

Rey tucking them in so carefully, cleaning them up and snuggling them down together so they were comfortable and happy and warm, was almost more than Finn's heart could take. He wanted very suddenly to give her—something, anything to show her how much he loved her, and how grateful he was that she was theirs and they were hers. "Come here, need you too," he said, holding up an arm in invitation for snuggling. "Can you feel how much I love you?" he asked her, hoping she could. Words alone were not going to do this feeling justice.

Rey smiled. "Of course I can, Finn. But I like hearing you say it, too." She would never get tired of that. She melted into his arms, into a kiss, but Poe's skin was cool and clammy, so she settled on Poe's other side so he was pressed between them. Rey linked hands with Finn across Poe’s back, and they were all pressed so close, actually, she could wrap her arm around Finn, too, scratching his shoulder blade lightly.

"Should we join him?" she whispered.

When Finn nodded, smiling shyly, she closed her eyes, and he did, too, and it took absolutely no effort at all to feel Poe through the Force, and connect to him through their bond.

Poe…wasn’t sure where he went when he was like this. It was maybe kind of like going back to the womb, or something, because he was numb and floaty and _free_ , freer than he could ever be unless he sprouted S-foils from his actual shoulders. Some people (Iolo was one) claimed to have out-of-body experiences when like this, but Poe never saw his body. Not that he could _feel_ it, either, though, so if he were outside his body, he wouldn’t know.

And it wasn't like he disappeared, either. Rey and Finn could wander through his mind and not encounter a single door or wall, much less anything locked or barred. He was _there_ more than he had even been, naked and willing and theirs, saturated with love and admiration and trust.

If Poe thought about it, he still heard voices, clear, almost loud, and smelled smells, and shut his eyes against bright light. He just couldn’t respond, or wasn't sure he wanted to.

Inside Poe's mind was like being nowhere and everywhere, and it was a strange sensation to Finn, at first. He was used to rigid control in his own mind, except when everything got to be too much and all the carefully organized things became chaos. In Poe, too, there was always a sort of control, a feeling of always keeping something back. And Rey, burning bright as sunshine and with as much ferocity, clearly did it for safety—her safety, and theirs.

But there was something about this open, perfect stillness in Poe's mind that called to its kin in Rey's and Finn's minds. It felt safe, for all it felt like detachment, and Finn and Rey both sighed and settled into it, their own minds quieting—not as much as Poe's, but enough. All three of them were quiet for some time, happy to exist in each others' space, as close as they'd ever been, and maybe a little intoxicated with it.

It was like meditating, but sharing it with Finn and Poe, and Rey thought that was wonderful and warm and far more relaxing than meditation usually was. She could have fallen asleep there, but there were things that needed taking care of. She needed to get Poe to drink some water, even if she had to wake him up from this.

When Rey opened her eyes, Poe suddenly drew in deep breath, fingers fisting lightly in blankets and pillow, and then relaxing again with a sigh.

"Think he's coming out of it," she whispered. "Help me turn him over, Finn?"

And it wasn't an immediate thing. It wasn't like Poe clawing his way out of anesthesia. It wasn't even like Poe waking up from a deep sleep. It was like Poe being born, somehow. As they lifted and rolled his limp weight (but light, like he really was defying gravity, somehow), Poe blinked eyes open, bleary, unfocused. He wasn't sure when he had last blinked.

Bright. Count toes and fingers. Rey and Finn. Here. Smell. Sleep rest good…soft. Water? Hugs. Blink. Heavy. Finn and Rey. Lips.

He made a soft noise that was maybe the beginnings of a word, and Rey smiled and kissed his brow. "Hey, sweetheart. Look at those beautiful eyes." She beamed at Finn, and Poe mimicked the expression, smiling up at Finn, too.

Finn's heart melted at that smile, and at the way Poe was slowly waking up, no rushing or urgency, just taking his time. "Hey, love of mine," Finn said to him, giving him a smile in return and then looking at Rey. "Look at you two, how did I ever get so lucky?" he asked in awe. He could have cried of sheer happiness, but instead he laughed, a short laugh of surprise, but a laugh nonetheless. "Every time I think my heart can't hold any more or I'll explode, both of you prove me wrong," he told them, beaming.

Rey kept an arm around Finn, petting him gently, letting Poe take his time between the press of their bodies. But things were still jerky and confused in Poe's head, so she wasn't surprised that he didn't answer. "Then we'll keep finding ways to love him more, huh?" Rey asked Poe, brushing hair back from his face.

Poe nodded, eyes tracking her with lazy clarity. He felt chilled, almost, and was glad they were both there, touching him, warming him. He wanted to burrow beneath them but couldn't muster the strength. He wanted to close his eyes but they were too beautiful to let out of his sight.

"You're going to drink some water now, okay, love?" Rey said, and helped Poe lift his head to drink from a straw. At first Poe seemed interested only in doing what Rey wanted, but at the first taste of water he made a startled noise and drank the rest down in gulps. When he was done, he sighed and lay back, head turning against Finn's shoulder.

Rey smiled at the pair they made.

Finn hummed happily as Poe made himself comfortable. "This is good," he said with absolute certainty. And yes, there was a war on and yes, they were on a mission for that war and yes, there was always the danger something would happen to one or all of them, but none of that existed in this small room on this small bed. Everything here was good—was _perfect_ —and he could stroke Poe's hair and beg gentle kisses from Rey with just a look, all to his heart's content. Rey could take care of them and arrange them and make them safe and sound to _her_ heart's content, and Poe could let them shower him in love and comfort to _his_ heart's content.

So, yeah, Finn was pretty sure this was perfection.

Rey stuffed a pillow behind Finn's back and another behind his head, and tugged another blanket over Poe, who was shivering faintly but hadn't yet asked for anything, hadn't even moved except to shift one leg and curl and uncurl his fingers. She kissed him and slid behind him, nudging Poe against Finn's chest so he was sandwiched between them. Rey and Finn held each other with Poe wedged between them, happy as a clam and more relaxed than she had even seen him. He didn't even shift to get comfortable but lay as she moved him.

"Thank you," Rey said, after a minute, eyes shining at Finn. "Thank you for doing that with us. For making it wonderful. For being wonderful." She scrubbed her fingers over Finn's hair. "It's easy to forget there's a world beyond you two when you're with me."

"That's my favorite part. Everything else just goes away for a little while. My whole world is these two beautiful, wonderful people and we all chose each other..." he trailed off, the likelihood of having reached this point, of being not only happy but _loved_ , and of loving, momentarily stopping his voice—he could never have _conceived_ of this a year ago. "I just...I love you," he said, and gave Poe a very soft, chaste kiss. "You where you can hear all these wonderful things we're saying about us?" he asked with a soft laugh, and Rey also chuckled, because Poe still looked really out of it, that dopey relaxed smile on his face awakening every protective instinct she had.

"I think he is," Rey said with a small giggle, tracing the pattern the ropes had left on his shoulder before pulling the blanket up to his neck. "And we love Finn, too, don't we?" she whispered, and Poe stirred, blinked, and nodded, humming. His fingers curled around Finn's hip, where Rey had flung his arm, and he arched back against her so every possible inch of them was touching. Then, exhausted by this effort, he blinked sleepily.

Rey laughed again. "Oh, Poe," she said, and kissed the back of his neck before lifting herself up to lean over and kiss Finn. Finn hadn't stopped smiling, and it was blinding, and Rey couldn't stop smiling, either, so their kiss was all teeth. "Ready for sleep?" she asked, reaching up to hit the switch by her bed.

Finn nodded sleepily and fidgeted a little until he fit against Poe like a puzzle piece. In the dark, he was aware of Poe's slow, deep breaths and he curled to rest his head where he could hear his heartbeat. That, too, was slow and relaxed, and he smiled with his eyes closed as he listened. He put his hand on Rey's side and curled his fingers around her waist. He was going to sleep like he was in a coma, and he actually knew what that felt like.


	7. Chapter 7

Rey was the first to wake naturally, as the lights automatically shifted to daylight cycle. BB-8 was chirping, and Rey wondered how long they had been talking so quietly.

"Morning, Bee. What's wrong?"

[This is my usual decibel level for waking Friend-Poe. We have an anomalous reading on scanners that I thought he might want to take a look at.]

Rey looked down, but Poe and Finn were completely out. She grinned, almost proud of that, and kissed them. "I'll come take a look," she said. Maybe the Force had woken her up for the same reason.

[I will keep my eye on it to make sure it does nothing squirrelly!]

Rey laughed softly. “No, it’s all right, I’ll come now.” She didn’t want to leave the bed with her boys in it, but she _almost_ had a bad feeling about this. She got out of bed, tugging a blanket free and around her shoulders.

When she was sitting in the cockpit, looking at the scanners, she frowned. “Okay, let’s change course and see what it’s about.”

BB-8 swiveled their dome to look up at Rey. [Are we sure we don’t want to wait and see?]

“I’m sure,” she said, taking them gently out of hyperspace once she made the re-calculations, and sending them back in. “My job is to check out this Disturbance in the Force—or whatever. We’re just going to take a look.”

[Okay] BB-8 said, lens shining with trust.

Rey smiled, patted their dome, and returned to bed. The boys were still sound asleep, and she leaned down to press a kiss to Finn's temple, and then to Poe's, as she slid into bed.

Finn woke slowly, pretty sure neither he nor Poe had moved. He hugged Poe close to him and nuzzled at the follow of his throat, then opened his eyes with a soft sigh. He hadn't really heard the conversation between Rey and BB-8, but he'd recognized the droid's voice. "Everything okay?" he asked Rey, still blinking sleepily. He thought he could maybe go back to sleep right here, if left to it.

"Yeah," Rey said. "BB-8 found something on sensors, so we’re gonna check it out. How you feeling?" she asked, since how he had slept was fairly obvious, and she rubbed his arm.

"Remember that first time we Force-bonded? I feel kind of like that. But less out-of-it," he responded, and turned his arm over so Rey would scratch it. She chuckled at this very unsubtle request and scratched gently up and down his forearm until it seemed like he might just fall asleep—then she stopped. "But, hey! I liked that..." he whined, and she leaned in to kiss him again.

Rey giggled and pressed close, scratching his back lightly and kissing across his face. "It was like that first time, wasn't it? Intense." She hummed and sighed, stretching briefly before returning to curl closer around Finn, Poe still dead to the world between them. "And I'm glad that—you enjoyed it, too. That it worked for all of us," she said, and kissed Finn's cheek.

Between them, Poe stirred, making a soft waking-up noise, which was weird, because Poe didn't normally do waking-up noises. He just was awake or asleep. Now he snuffled and whined, stretching slightly.

Poe felt like he was sleeping on a cloud, and had been all night. He was maybe a little too warm, but he felt so relaxed and loose and comfortable, and he could feel Rey and Finn's pulses against his skin. Though soothing enough to send him back to sleep, these were worth waking up for. He blinked and, as his vision focused, he smiled up at Finn. "Hi."

"Good morning," Finn answered, brushing Poe's hair off his forehead so he could see his eyes better. He grinned. "Sleep alright?" he asked.

"I'm pretty sure none of us moved last night," Rey commented. She raised herself on an elbow and rested her chin on the side of Poe's shoulder. Finn nodded in agreement and leaned in to kiss her nose.

"Mornin'," Poe said, managing to look demurely disheveled from under his long lashes. His body was contorted in a strange position, but he wasn't uncomfortable, and he sighed contentedly. "That was..." he struggled for a minute before deciding to go with: "wow."

Rey laughed, and reached up to play with a curl that lay against Poe's neck, and then resting her hand on Finn's arm which rested on Poe's hip. "You were really wonderful," she said. "You both were."

Poe hummed, and shifted slightly, trying to wriggle onto his back so he could see them both, but their closeness didn't let him move much, and he gave up. Moving wasn't worth it, though he did manage a few weak kicks to free his feet from the blankets so he wasn’t too warm. " _You_ were wonderful," he said. "I—that was—um—thanks."

"Poe!" Rey laughed. "You can't _thank_ us for amazing sex! Even I, the asexual from Jakku's armpit, know better than _that_ , Poe Dameron. You better finish waking up, or I'm going to revoke your speaking privileges again."

Poe laughed and flung an arm over his face as he blushed. "Don't wanna," he complained, thoroughly embarrassed.

"Hmmmm, guess that means more breakfast for us, huh Rey?" Finn gave an exaggerated sigh. "It'll be a hardship to eat the extra pancakes, but we'll do what we must." He glanced down at Poe to see if this was having any effect.

"Pancakes? Just pancakes? After all that work we did last night, we're making bacon and eggs to go with the pancakes," Rey added.

"I'm _not_ letting you two make pancakes unsupervised ever again," Poe said, and laughed, bright and clear and deep in his belly. He shifted, but he didn't have enough leverage to sit up, and even if he did: "Fucking kriff, I'm sore," he hissed, closing his eyes somewhere between bliss and actual pain. "Ah. Oh. Help," he said, and laughed again. Rey giggled, nudging blankets down to get a look at him. His elbows and wrists were lightly bruised, but she had expected that, and there was a hand-shaped bruise on his hip, and there were a few places where she had gotten overzealous with her fingernails, but he was definitely not showing any signs of serious injury.

"What hurts, sweetheart?" she asked.

"Just—stiff, I think. Like I had a three-hour massage. Or like someone was fucking me open for twenty minutes with my own fucking vibrator," he laughed, cutting his eyes accusingly at Rey.

"Okay, you're not allowed to be a baby afterward when you ask for this, and certainly not when you hurt so prettily," Rey admonished. "Let's get him sitting up."

"You do hurt very pretty," Finn said as he moved behind Poe to help him sit up. "And you make these noises..." he glanced up at Rey's bright laugh. " _What_?"

"I wasn't sure you'd enjoy it so much—I know you wanted to do it, but...”

“You really liked it?" Poe asked.

Finn nodded, smiling shyly as he glanced between them. He didn’t need to think about it before answering: "Yeah. I did.”

Poe was positively giddy with relief, and so overcome with love that he nearly burst into tears. Forgetting he had arms he could use now, he simply surged at Finn's face, kissing him deeply, possessively, gratefully. "You're _amazing_ , Finn. I love you," he gasped, when they parted, and without bothering to breathe again he spun around and kissed Rey just as hard. "And you, what do I say to the queen of my heart?"

Rey giggled. "Ooh, don't give me ideas," she said. "Make you both refer to me as 'queen' in bed...and all the time…"

Poe huffed and tried to fall back, but they wouldn't let him, and finally he shifted forward, groaning as he stretched his spine the opposite direction it had been bent last night. It felt really good, and made him light-headed.

"Oh, oops," Rey said. "I guess I got a little—rough with your back." She touched the tattoo of Ben Organa-Solo's name. "That's going to scab, sorry."

Poe shrugged and glanced over his shoulder, though he couldn’t actually see the spot. "I don't care—and if you want me to get it removed, I can," he offered.

Rey shook her head. "No. You can just be prepared for me to pick on that spot when we do this again." She grinned. "Also, for our wedding you can give me the gift of getting our names tattooed on you somewhere."

“Not my back, though."

"No. Somewhere you can see."

Poe chewed his lip thoughtfully, sat up straight, and held his arms out like his was piloting his X-Wing. "Wrists, maybe? On my thumbs, right here? But I'm always wearing gloves in the cockpit. Well— _usually_ wearing gloves." He grinned.

"I like the idea of our names being on your hands. It'll be like we're holding your hands even when you're away on missions," Finn said, which was so sweet that Rey had to stop helping Poe just to kiss Finn.

"I can't tell if you're being precious on purpose or if it's who you are as a person." She scrubbed a hand over his hair and he half-closed his eyes and hummed softly. "Okay, that was on purpose, and you're ridiculous," Rey giggled.

"I'm also very hungry," he added, and for effect adopted his best begging look. "Breakfast, my loves?" he asked, glancing between Poe and Rey.

Poe grinned from ear to ear, and only the fact that they were on a Very Important Mission kept him from changing course to visit Rokko right away. He wanted Rey and Finn’s names tattooed on his face. But. Wedding present. Also, Important Mission.

"Right, okay. Breakfast," Poe said, and slid out of bed, gingerly at first, but swinging and stretching his arms and legs helped a lot, and pulling on a pair of pants and socks and boots made him feel more human (wandering around the Falcon shirtless made him feel debonair and sexy and well-sexed, and he kept getting distracted by marks on his skin left there by his lovers) (he never wanted to put a shirt on ever again). Poe felt _fantastic_ : bright and _happy_ and clear-headed and sharp. Pleasure was still thrumming between them, like after their first Force-bond—less intense, but less dizzying, afterward, too.

"Oh, and BB-8 and I changed course," Rey said, while Poe was in the middle of mixing batter.

"Uh—what?" Poe said, putting down the bowl and wiping his hands. "Why didn't you say before?"

"Have you _seen_ both of you shirtless before, Poe?" Rey said, in her defense.

"Okay that's a fair point," Poe said with a grin, and commed the cockpit. "BB-8, where we headed, bud?"

[You're awake! Finally. There was an anomaly, and Friend-Rey and I changed course to investigate. I think it is...a ship? Or a space station. Or a moon. Possibly a Death Star, who knows? Not a big deal at all...]

Poe sighed. " _Okay_ , we'll be right there."

"You know, they get that drama from you," Rey said, following him down to the cockpit.

"Bee, in what version of reality is 'possibly a Death Star' defined as 'no big deal'?" Finn asked, and BB-8 rolled over to him and gave him the sass wobble.

[Don't get cranky with me just because I interrupted pancakes] they said, and zipped back to their console. Finn fought down a laugh.

"But Bee! Pancakes! And eggs! _Bacon_!" he said, pitching his voice toward the obnoxious.

BB-8 swiveled their dome toward him, went still for a moment, and then pointedly turned back to what they were doing.

"You're my favorite, Bee," Finn told them, just to make sure they knew he was joking, and he received a waterfall of droid laughter in return.

Poe and Rey were in the copilot and pilot seats, respectively.

"Okay, I've got...oh, no," Poe groaned.

"Don't 'oh no' me...oh, crap," Rey said.

"What? What is it?" Finn demanded.

"I'm not sure."

"Good thing we changed course."

"It reads like a ship."

"But huge."

"How do they—seriously, if the First Order has built another Death Star or Starkiller, I just—" Poe spluttered. “Where are they getting the _money_?”

"It's definitely not reading like Starkiller base," Rey said, and Poe sighed a little.

"Yeah, but. Okay. We'll know more when we get closer. Hey," Poe said, and turned to waggle his eyebrows at Rey. "You thinking what I'm thinking?"

"If you're thinking that we get to try out the cloaking tech on the _Falcon_ ," Rey replied, her grin also playful. "Then _yes_."

"Hells, yes," Poe said.

[We're still 6.73 hours before we'll be in range] BB-8 said.

"Pancakes _and_ cloaking tech. A perfect day!" Rey cried.

[And I’d like to remind you we’re looking for a cloning facility…]

“Hey, you don’t know. We might get to blow up another Death Star! I've seriously always wanted to do that."

"Poe, you blew up Starkiller. Which was like, five times as deadly and thirty times as big."

Poe shook his head. "It's just not the _same_..." he said wistfully.

Finn looked between Poe and Rey, both amused and concerned. "... Okay, so do we want to have a plan other than ‘use the shiny new _Vapor_ tech,’ or...?" he asked.

[We want a plan!] BB-8 squawked, and they rolled over to Finn, earlier discussion already forgotten. [And it has to be better than 'attack.'] they added with a pointed look at Poe.

Poe laughed. "Give me some credit. I'm not just a pretty face."

[You have a certain love of 'flying by the seat of your pants', as Friend-Captain-Wexley has said...] BB-8 commented, but since they were generally complicit in such activities, it didn't carry a lot of weight.

He checked a few things on the scanners, plotting their course. "We'll come in at a good distance out and go stealth mode. Recon only, unless there's for some reason a really good opening. I mean, we knew there was something going on around Malagarr." Poe looked to Rey. "So we need to check it out."

"Can you tell yet how big we're talking about?" Finn asked as he went to stand almost between the pilot and co-pilot seats. "I mean, big, obviously, since it could be a space station or Death Star—” (Finn was pretty sure he had never heard the First Order having anything like that, but he didn’t want to crush Poe’s dreams) “but those aren't exactly a similar kind of big." An average space station, for example, held far fewer people, and a lot of them were used as stops instead of continuous habitations. Some of the huge ones, those about the size of the Death Star, were home bases, and were frequently used as training bases—they housed more children than adults. And Death Stars, if they ever existed again, would operate as full planets, with training centers and intake for newly taken kids and babies, as well as troop barracks and officer quarters.

Poe frowned. "Nothing yet..."

"Bigger than a super star destroyer," Rey said. "We'll know more when we get closer."

"How big are we looking for?" Poe said, sensing Finn might know more about what they were heading for than he or Rey. He spun around in the chair.

"Depends how exciting you want life to be. If it's big, it’s probably for processing, and there are probably kids on board," Finn said. "If it's _really_ big, well—the Death Star was a war machine only, but it's more efficient to use something like that as a training and residential station." He chewed at his lower lip. "I don't know why it'd be out here on the end of nowhere, is the thing. There's no _reason_..." he trailed off uncertainly, eyeing the console that had picked up and was displaying what limited information they currently had. "Not any reason I like, anyway." If it was way out here, they were hiding something.

Poe slipped his hand into Finn's, squeezing it. "Hey, it's okay. I was joking about blowing shit up. I mean, the _Falcon's_ good, but that's pushing it. And I'm not interested in blowing up kidnapped stormtroopers of any age, unless their super-weapon is about to destroy something." He kissed Finn's hand. "And if there's cloning technology, we're going to find it. If there's kids, we're going to rescue them." He laughed, suddenly. "Never mind this is supposed to be ‘recon only.’"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there," Finn said, and gave Poe's hand a squeeze. His stomach growled loudly, and he was reminded that he hadn't eaten. None of them had. "Is there anything we can do before we get there, or should we eat?" he asked.

"Ha, sorry," Poe said, and jumped up. "Pancakes for my beautiful betrotheds," he said, taking Rey's hand, too, and leading them back to the galley.

"And bacon," Rey reminded him.

"And bacon," he agreed. "And caf. Then we get dressed and we'll be ready for...whatever that is out there."

Poe sang, and they laughed and talked as he cooked for them, feeling light and easy and forgetting about the war and their mission for a few hours. Setting food in front of them was the only way to shut them up, and even that only lasted for a few minutes while they abated their hunger.

"Good?" He checked, when they really were slowing down. "I've got more pancakes."

"How many pancakes did you _make_?" Finn asked in astonishment. Rey finished her last pancake and pushed her plate away a few inches, reminding herself that the pancakes would keep, and that she didn't need to eat them now or risk starving later. She smiled softly—the knowledge of that kind of safety would never grow old.

"If you're both done, we can find something to put leftover pancakes in. I'm sure I have some kind of wrap that will keep them from getting stale," she said as she got up. She kissed each of them on the neck as she took her plate to the sink. "Finn, you help with dishes, since neither of us cooked," she added.

Poe fist pumped the air. "Yessss, I'm gonna go hit the refresher, then," he said, more than glad to leave the cleaning up to his more fastidious affianced. He kissed them as they shared the washing up, and excused himself. He washed and dressed quickly (lingering touches over soft bruises reminding him of their rapturous night), and since they didn't know what today would bring, dressing included his sidearm, utility belt, jacket, and boot knife.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Rey dried and put away the dishes Finn washed, and she giggled as she had to dance around him a few times. "The galley really wasn't made for more than one person," she said, as they both held their breath to allow her to slide past where Finn stood over the sink. She couldn't resist, once she was fitted against his back, grabbing his waist and squeezing until he drew his elbows back and twitched in laughter.

Finn squealed in a very undignified way and squirmed to turn around. "That's cheating!" he laughed, and then kissed her nose because it had made her smile earlier and it made her giggle now. While she was thus distracted, he grabbed the sponge from the sink and squeezed it over her head.

"Ew! Gross! Fiiiinnnnnn!" she screeched, and used her drying towel to snap him in the ass as hard as she could. " _Gross_ now you have to wash my hair," she declared imperiously.

"A little less noise there!" Poe called, teasing, like he cared how much noise they made. Rey thought he was pretending to sound like his dad, because he kind of put on an accent, which he immediately dropped when he added: "I'll be in the cockpit, buddies!"

"Okay!" Rey called back, her voice surprisingly loud for someone of her size. "Well. Enough clowning around, Finn. You need to wash my hair!"

"Why are we shouting?!" Finn added to the general noise, and Rey snapped him with the towel again. "Okay that's enough of that," he said. With a grin, he reached for her and then bent suddenly to grab her around the waist and throw her over his shoulder. She screeched, predictably, and then giggled. When they reached the bathroom Finn let her squirm free so he could turn on the water and take off his clothes.

Rey looked at Finn with half-lidded eyes as he set her down. It wasn't just that he was strong— _she_ was strong—it was that he was so casual about it. "I think I see what Poe means," she purred, sliding against him and leaning in to demand a kiss. "You are our most beloved," she said, throwing her arms around Finn and kissing him. "Will you wash my hair please?" she added, actually asking this time.

"Of course I'll wash your hair. It's only fair," Finn said, beckoning for Rey to go in ahead of him. He stepped in after her as she stood under the water getting her hair wet. "Turn around?" he asked when her hair was wet. After he had thoroughly shampooed her hair, he twisted it up on the top of her head and rubbed her shoulders for a few minutes, grinning when she practically melted and sighed happily. "Ready to rinse? Poe will think he's being left out of something if we take much longer," he said after several quiet minutes.

Rey giggled. "I bet he's wonderful to get knotted up with jealousy," she said evilly, but didn't push things, and helped Finn to rinse off and then dry off. She dressed for battle, her lightsaber going into its holster at the small of her back, her flowing wrap exchanged for more practical tactical gear. She bundled her hair, clean and wet, into its usual knots (she had worn it down for the past few days).

Finn, too, dressed for fighting, holstering a sidearm on either hip and adding a knife in a sheath to the outside of a boot. Last of all, he slung his jacket over his shoulders, settling into the familiarity of it. "All set?" he asked Rey, and she nodded.

"I will always be ready to ruin the First Order's day in any way possible."


	8. Chapter 8

Poe looked up when they joined him in the cockpit. "You know, I woke up this morning thinking I wouldn't need sex for at least a few hours...and then you two have to go and dress like _that_." Rey was dressed in sleek dark chestnut with fingerless gloves, and Finn was wearing two blasters because he apparently didn't care that Poe had a libido or anything. "And you're wearing my jacket," he said, beaming. It really only came out for special occasions, anymore.

[The signal?] BB-8 prompted.

"Oh, right," Poe said. "So I'm thinking space station...? It's not moving like a ship, but it may be hyperdrive-capable. Here's the stats we've got now, Finn," he added, leaning back so Finn could see.

Finn went over and looked the console, resting a hand on Poe's shoulder and squeezing a little. "It's about the right size for a space station..." he said. He couldn't tell a lot more, but at least they had a size now. "I don't understand why it's out here unless they're doing something really shifty. There's no way they've put people out here for training or something."

"Okay, so we need to check it out," Poe said.

"Coming out of lightspeed," Rey said.

"Going dark," Poe said, and activated the cloaking tech.

"Ease us in carefully, Poe," Rey whispered.

Poe rolled his eyes and smirked obnoxiously. "Baby, I can ease on into—"

"Poe! Be serious!" she snapped. She was getting a bad feeling about this.

"Okay, okay. Sorry."

They were silent as they approached. It was a space station, cube-shaped, and Poe made a circuit slowly around it. "I don't think they see us."

"There's no TIEs," Rey commented.

"Or even probe droids," Poe added. "That's weird. Finn, are there any First Order vessels with...no personnel on them?"

"Are we even sure this is a First Order...station?" Rey said.

"It's First Order. But—Rey, is there anyone here? Because they should be out, or someone should. There are always people coming and going from stations this size. It's _weird_." It was making his skin prickle. "There's something wrong. This is wrong. They wouldn't set a trap out here. It's too far away from everything." He looked over at Rey.

"There's someone there I think, but... It doesn't feel like it should if it were fully inhabited. It's like it's—asleep." She shook her head in frustration and sighed. "Can you get us closer?" she asked Poe. Since they clearly hadn't been detected yet, they could at least get some more information.

Poe nodded, finally serious. "I mean, I could get us...inside?" He'd never encountered so little resistance getting this close to a First Order vessel before. "Rey, sugar, I've got this. If you need to do...Force stuff. Mask our presence? Try to figure out who's on this thing? What it is?"

There were huge landing bays, which didn't make sense if no one was actually on it. "Is it not finished?" he wondered suddenly, eyes picking out signs of life—finally—maintenance droids working on the hull. "This is weird, guys. If this were a cloning facility—you need _people_ for that. Doctors, techs, hell— _basic security_." Poe glanced at Rey, and Finn, in case they had any ideas. "Do we want to try going in?"

"I think we need to—we  have to find out what they're doing here," Finn said, "Unless it feels like a trap?" He looked over at Rey. She looked uncertain for a moment and then shrugged.

"It doesn't feel like there are enough people for it to be a trap," she said.

"Did Starkiller really hit them that hard?" Poe mused. "I mean I knew we had them on the ropes, but..." Poe swung around again, looking for a point of entry that wouldn't be noticed. "Maybe they thought it'd never be found, out here. There, that looks pretty good."

"What looks pretty good?"

"Exhaust port? We won't want to stay for long but we could get in in suits. Probably stay unnoticed," Poe said.

"Yeah, good idea. Rey, where are the suits on this thing?" Finn asked, and Rey stood.

"Think you can land her by yourself?" she asked, clapping Poe on the shoulder with a grin. "Come on, they're in the galley."

"...Why?"

"They were originally near the cockpit, but then we had an Incident." Finn raised both eyebrows at her. "Luke upset the stove." She opened a closet right outside the galley and pulled out three pressure suits.

Poe laughed as they went off, and oozed them into what looked like an unused exhaust port, and flipped them upside-down to land.

"So this'll be fun when we leave the _Falcon's_ grav," he said, joining Finn and Rey in the galley to don his own pressure suit and oxygen pack. "Rey is in charge of finding us a way into this."

Rey grinned. "You two aren't as small as me. But I'll try."

"Be careful," Finn said, and Rey grinned at him.

"Aren't we always?" she asked him.

"Are you serious? Really? Like you're actually serious right now." Finn bent to kiss her fiercely before she put on her helmet. For good measure, he pulled Poe close and kissed him as well. "I'm serious. Be careful. This isn't normal."

Poe managed to be serious, strapping his blaster on the outside of his suit. "Anything for you, sweetheart," he said, grinning. Okay, mostly serious.

They followed Rey out, bodies going partially weightless as they slid along to an exhaust shaft. As they crawled further along, some measure of artificial gravity kicked in, and soon they were on hands and knees.

"Any more bad feelings?" Poe whispered. It was eerily quiet, and there were no voices.

Rey frowned. "No. I mean—no _more_. But there's...this way..." Something was very _strange_. She kept looking back to make sure Finn was behind her, taking up the rear of their party. She wasn't sure why she was worried he wouldn't be.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" Finn asked, after about the fifth time Rey looked back at him. The tube they'd been crawling through was opening up, and ahead it emptied out into a hall. They could see lights through the grating at the end of the tunnel, but there were still no human noises, only the occasional mechanical whirr of droids.

"I don't know, I don't know," Rey said, frustrated.

"I wish BB-8 were here," Finn said, but they'd left them to guard the _Falcon_.

"We need BB-8 to be there in case we need to take off suddenly," Poe said, and glanced between Rey and Finn. "You want me to take up the rear?"

Rey considered it, then shook her head. Poe wasn't a slouch, but he needed their protection (no matter what he said). "No. But—I need to figure out what's going on here. This might be the disturbance Master Luke was talking about. It's weird. It's so weird, not scary, but _off_." She grunted in frustration and pulled up a grate below them. "We're going down."

"Rey!" Poe hissed, but she was already down. He held his breath, expecting alarms, but nothing. He glanced cautiously at Finn and then moved to follow her.

Finn looked at Poe and frowned, but they didn't have much choice but to follow her. "Rey? Any idea where we're going?" he asked as they lowered themselves as far as they could before dropping the last few feet. "Also—weird like how?"

"Just weird," she snapped, beckoning them down a hallway and shoving them into a side-alcove as a droid patrolled the hall.

It didn't see them, which Poe at least thought was weird. Droid vision didn't work in the same way as organic vision, and even one with a bad processor would have been able to sense their proximity. Maybe Rey was shielding them, he thought, because that made more sense than this creepy-ass hunk of a half-built space-station hanging in Wild Space.

Now Rey and Finn both led the way. "It's this way, Finn," she said, pointing down a hall.

"But the command center will be this way, if we want answers," Finn protested.

Behind them, Poe gave a silent cry as another droid rounded the corner, but it was too late. He had drawn his blaster to shoot, but the droid merely bustled past and down another corridor, like it hadn't seen them. Poe blinked, turning back around, but Rey and Finn hadn't seen it. "Um, guys?" he whispered. Droids not noticing him _bothered_ Poe. It wasn’t natural. "We...we should get going. Please?"

"We can't leave until we figure out what's going on here," Rey said with determination. "Leia sent us here to figure out what the First Order is doing."

"Then we should go to the command center," Finn said. He even tried to pull her in that direction, but Rey was determined to find where the "weird" was coming from, and she pulled her hand out of his grip.

"No, I know," Poe hissed. "Finn, let's try her way first, okay, buddy? We can check out the command center once we know what we might be walking into?" Finn looked uncertain, but Poe was not going to let them split up.

"Yeah," Finn said, figuring it was better to stay together than argue about where he thought they should go.

"I really don't understand what the droids are doing here," Poe said. "Are you keeping them from sensing us? Or are they just not...seeing us?"

"I'm not doing anything," Rey said. She sounded distracted and had stopped walking.

"Where are all the—" Finn started, but Rey reached back and waved her hand to hush him. "What—"

Rey turned back, took a step forward into a room, and some automatic lights came on.

"Whoa, shit. Kriff, those are—"

"Clones."


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning for evil First Order eugenics.

"Clones."

There were tanks lining both walls of the...room? Hall? Floor to ceiling. And every tank held a small infant. They were well past unrecognizable-fetus stage. These were _infants_.

Poe had just opened his mouth to tell them about the droids that had not seen them but should have when they stopped, crowding into a new, dimly-lit room, and he just left his mouth open, gaping. "Stars and _skies_ ," he finally said, and his stomach churned. It was one thing to theorize the First Order growing and raising clones...and another to see thousands upon thousands of _babies_. "Fuck. Oh my gods," he said, unable to do anything else.

They were all silent, frozen in their own horror at the babies in their sterile chambers. The tanks were clear, which meant if they stepped closer they could _see_ the babies, some of them _moving,_ others sleeping peacefully to all appearances.

"How do we help them?” Finn, ever practical, was the first to ask. “They're so small..." he added, his voice very soft. He wanted to free all of them immediately, but he recognized that the logistics were impossible with only three people. He looked to Poe and Rey for help.

"Oh my gods," Poe said again, still a few stages of freaking out behind them both. "Oh my gods. Force." They were _babies_ , growing in _tanks_! To populate a future Starkiller. Poe had to lean against the wall, actually almost sick.

Rey actually moved first. The infants had life, each of them, lives she could sense through the Force, and she maybe hadn't sensed many babies with the Force before, but they still didn't feel quite _right_. She went to a console. "There are over ten thousand of them," she reported. "Thirty-seven weeks old. Everything—" her hands raced across the console, " _everything_ is automated. All droids."

 _Automated_?! Poe thought, mind reeling, leaning over to rest his hands on his knees. He didn’t know much about babies but he knew human contact was important during very early stages, even pre-birth. No humanoid could survive like that! Automated?! Babies raised by _droids_?! Poe loved droids more than most people, but it was absurd. You'd end up with brain damaged sociopaths who—

Of _course_.

"Force," he breathed. _Don't be sick in your pressure suit,_ he coached himself, and managed a few careful breaths. He was sick with rage. Straightening slowly, Poe walked the walls lined with tanks filled with fluid and filled with children. Children the First Order was going to destroy, strip the humanity from them so nothing like Finn and the other defectors would happen again. "Maker," he swore. It wasn't anything like the cloning facilities that were in the _Clone Wars_ cartoon, and he hadn't realized until now how much he had expected that, and how naïve it was. "Moons." Was this worse than kidnapping other people's children, like they had done with Finn and Finn’s class? Did it matter, knowing what they would be put through as they grew up? From what Finn had told him...

Oh, stars, Finn must be—

"Finn," Poe said, turning to him. _I'm so sorry. Please tell me this isn't what it looks like. Let me comfort you. Comfort me._

Finn pulled Poe close to him and held him for a moment before deciding that they probably had to move forward if they were going to help the clones—if they _could_ help the clones. "They're not all exactly the same, look," he said as he walked along a row, stopping when the identical clones changed suddenly. It wasn't a drastic change, because they were babies and basically all looked the same anyway, as far as Finn could tell. But here they were different: one clone had the lightest of blonde hair, so light it almost looked bald, but the next had a head of straight, dark hair. He took a step back, and further down could see that the little bodies changed again, though all he could tell from here was that they had short hair that almost looked curly, or at least different than the little ones in front of him. "They have more than one clone?" he asked, turning to Rey and Poe.

Rey returned to the console. "Yes, they have multiple—uh—strains?" she said. Finn took Poe’s hand, guiding him through the large room, past rows and rows of tanks. Rey's voice followed them on the coms: "Yes, it looks like they have a hundred strains, one hundred specimens each. They don't look...modified in any way? Who knows.” I'll try to...maybe we should get to the command—" Rey stopped. "Oh, _Force_ ," she said.

Poe and Finn had wandered past rows and rows of clones, watching them change, different skin tones, different hair colors, until they reached one that was darker than the rest. And that alone didn't necessarily mean anything, but...

" _POE_ ," Rey said, and the tone in her voice had Poe pulling Finn away.

"Don't look, don't look," Poe said, but gods, look where? Was it so much better to look at the DNA harvested from other stormtroopers, also probably against their wills, resulting in thousands of clones…or…? "Finn." Poe said, but Finn's eyes were glued to the tanks. Poe grabbed his face. "Finn, look at me. Look at me."

Finn looked at Poe, his heart pounding uncomfortably as he tried pulling away. "Rey—sweetheart, please," he said softly, "They're—they can’t—"

"They are."

Finn closed his eyes.

"It says FN-2187.”

Finn let out a breath.

“Finn?" Rey asked.

"Yeah," Finn said.  

They were all quiet, and Finn pulled gently away from Poe, one hand still clasped in his as he rested his fingertips against the glass of one of the tanks, looking down and seeing...himself, presumably, when he was only tiny, before he'd been FN-2187, long before he'd been Finn, even before he’d been—whatever his parents called him.

And these little ones, they would all— _all_ of them—have no chance for even that bit of unremembered peace. These human children were being grown like so many garden plants, or manufactured like droids. They had never even heard another human voice, would know nothing other than the First Order. They would be the perfect, mindless automatons that the First Order wanted, which they had _had_ before Finn had gone renegade and set off a chain reaction of defecting Stormtroopers. This was Finn’s fault, by some logic.

He felt like he was going to be sick, or maybe just cry.

"Okay, okay," Poe said, his heart pounding, letting Finn pull him closer. Oh, gods, hundreds of tiny, baby Finns. He couldn’t look at them. "Fuck. Okay. We're going to—we’re going to get them out of here. We're going to save all of them," Poe said, clenching his jaw. He let go of Finn's hand, going to a computer console, like that would help.

Something was blinking orange. An error. Poe followed it. " _What_ ," he said, and then glanced up. "Oh, mother of meteors," he swore, and tapped Finn on the shoulder, and pointed. A tank at the end of the row, inches above their heads, was slightly off-center, the infant inside pressed against the glass. It looked deformed, from here, a malformed hand at least. Poe glanced back at the computer. _It was asking him if he wanted it to destroy the defective clone_ , and Poe had to stop and walk away. This was...surreal. This was brain-explodingly wrong. "Fuck," he said.

When he turned back, Finn was on his knees.

Rey came up then. "I tried to—warn—oh, _Force_ ," she said, eyes growing huge as she looked up at them all. "Oh, gods." She reached out a hand to Poe, and together they stepped up behind Finn. They each laid a hand on his shoulder. "We're going to go to the command deck," she said.

"If it's all automated, we can override everything. We can take them back to the Resistance," Poe suggested.

They were just beginning to think this might work when an alarm sounded.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning for death and destruction on a First Order scale. Also General Hux.

"Shit," Poe said.

"Kriff." Rey said.

And then an image appeared, shining on every screen and holoprojector in the room. A pale man with red hair, in a First Order uniform. "Who the fuck is this?" Poe demanded.

"It's Hux," Finn whispered, not looking up.

"You are trespassing on First Order property. You have five minutes to vacate the premises or be executed," he sneered, dripping High Basic with an aristocratic lisp.

"It's a recording. Don't worry about it. If there are security droids, we'll handle them," Poe said. "Finn, I need you to stand up."

"In five minutes this station will self-destruct—"

" _What_?!"

"...Although this First Order property represents a significant investment, the loss will be nothing compared to the loss we would suffer should it fall into the wrong hands. The traitor FN-2187 taught us this lesson well." His eyes, cold and icy blue, seemed to be looking right at Finn.

Finn stood, whirling on the largest holo with a feral snarl. He wanted to hunt this man down. He _would_ hunt Hux down, after they'd figured out a way to stop the ship from self-destructing. "Go find the command center, I'll work from here." He didn't tell them his backup plan: if they couldn't stop the self-destruct, he was saving as many as he could, if he had to break open the chambers to do it.

“ _What the actual fuck_?!” Poe bellowed. "No way, wait. It can't—he has to be bluffing, this is a bluff!" Clones were fucking _expensive_! No way they just trip an alarm and he blows up billions of credits and—thirty-seven weeks of work—hadn’t Finn been _gone_ longer than that?—not to mention ten thousand _souls_ —

They could have been smugglers, scavengers, here on accident, not caring about clones! This guy must be fucking insane if _this_ was his idea of a fall-back plan. A few droidekas would solve your problems much more cheaply and _sanely_. Hells, you could buy an army of droidekas to fight your battles for you for the cost of this station…

Then Poe remembered this was the asshole who had no problem destroying five planets in one go, and whose super-weapon literally destroyed _suns_...sanity had nothing to do with it.

"Poe," Finn said again, his giving-orders voice, and Poe nodded and was gone, sprinting to the command center.

Rey didn't follow him, instead slashing open a maintenance hatch with her lightsaber. "I'm going to try destroying the computer. Try to stop this self-destruct," she said, and was gone.

The stupid computer kept counting down while Finn tried with no success to stop it. No success in freeing the tanks, or breaking them, or getting them loose from the walls. "Fuck, you kriffing piece of bantha shit!" he shouted. It didn't help.

"FUCK!" he yelled as the computer calmly informed them that they had three minutes. "FUCK YOU, HUX. GODSDAMN YOU TO ETERNAL TORTURE!" he cried, to nothing, and the computer informed him that he'd lost another thirty seconds. Thirty seconds after that, he'd literally torn the console from its pedestal and flung it to the ground because that, he could move.

But the tanks wouldn’t budge.

He couldn't save them. All these little lives, and he couldn't even give them the chance to know living. Not even the little defective one, not even his own clones. He stared at them in horror as they slept on, completely unaware that they had so precious little time left to sleep. "I'm sorry," he said, and repeated it to as many as he could touch until he came to the little malformed one. "I'm so sorry, little one. I'm so sorry."

…

Poe sprinted the entire way to the command center, his suit unable to keep up with his need for oxygen, so he showed up seeing spots. There were a few droids there, who ignored him, and Poe shoved them to the side. "BB-8," he said over the com, "buddy, I need you to try to hack into this thing remotely—"

"Friend-Poe! I detect a self-destruct countdown! You must get on board the _Falcon_!"

"Not now, Bee. We need to _stop_ the self-destruct." It was a cold anger that had taken hold of him, and everything was hyper-clear. "I'm gonna fucking kill this ginger douchecraft carrier, I ever meet him." He tried to memorize the blue eyes and snotty voice. "We ever meet, he's dying."

[Friend-Poe, I can try an emergency shutdown, but it will be encrypted. I will cycle through codes.]

"Thanks, Bee, you're the best," Poe gasped. "As fast as you can..."

...

Rey swung through the inner workings of the ship, letting muscle memory guide her, collecting bruises along the way, her breath echoing loud inside her helmet. She had been inside enough Imperial vessels that she had a pretty good idea where she needed to go.

And when she dropped to a floor with something like gravity and had reached the mainframe, and started hacking shit to pieces with both ends of her lightsaber spinning so hard sweat poured into her eyes, she imagined those cold blue eyes and red hair and it blended into Kylo Ren. Things sparked and lights went out, they started losing what little pressure the station had, and gravity fluctuated. She didn't care that she wasn't supposed to, but she allowed the hate to flow through her. It felt good.

Well, better than letting all these children _die_.

…

Time was running down, and Finn decided abruptly that Hux wasn't getting all of his way. They couldn't save all of the clones, but he might save one. He looked at the baby in the tank just above him, smushed against the wall of his tank.

In two minutes there was no way he could take apart one of the whole tanks, but this one was already broken. He pulled at it and broke it the rest of the way and, while he couldn’t get the entire tank free, he could pry at the most broken end until the top came off.

The baby didn't much react when Finn pulled him out of the tank, but he was alive, and once free of the fluid, he wrinkled up his nose, gave the tiniest of coughs, and then his little chest moved—so he was breathing, too.

"Okay, baby. Okay," he said, panicking because he hadn't thought this far. He wasn't thinking straight, which probably saved the baby from suffocating in the low pressure. Finn unzipped his suit (and shit now he couldn't breathe well, either) and put the baby inside against his chest, holding him from the outside as the computer informed them that they had a minute and a half. "Poe! Rey!” he shouted over his comlink. “We have to get out. I'm sorry, we have to—we have to go. Get back to the _Falcon_!" he yelled into his comm. Then, baby zipped inside his suit, more or less, he ran. He prayed to any god that existed and was listening and, repeating over and over how sorry he was, he left the eerily peaceful children and the nightmare room. "Guys, tell me—tell me you're back at the _Falcon_. Please, I can't—lose you here. I won't," he sobbed as he neared the ship.

BB-8 was on Finn's com: [Get on board! Man the ventral blasters! We're going to go get them!]

The droid then switched to a private channel. [Friend-Poe, I don't think we can get the code in time. Please get back to the ship.]

"No, no, BB-8, damn it, we can do this. Keep trying!"

[Friend-Rey hasn't answered my hails, Master-Poe. Please.]

Startled by BB-8 reverting to their factory-programming in their fear, Poe froze, eating up five precious seconds. The recording of Hux repeated his message. Fifty-five seconds.

"Gods _fucking_ damn it," he swore, and yanked hard on something that looked like a hard-drive or memory bank, hoping to take it with them, but it didn’t budge. "Okay, I'm going after her." He opened the channel wide. "Rey! Rey, we need to get to the ship! Rey, I'm coming after you."

This time, she answered. "Don't. I'm not letting them win," she grunted. He heard crashing, sparking, small explosions.

"Rey, if you die, they win!" Poe skidded back to the room with the tanks, following the scores of lightsaber blasts, trying, trying not to look at the babies. He yanked on one of the tanks, but was unable to get it free from its apparatus.

"I can _feel_ them, Poe!"

She had never sounded more frantic, more scared.

"They feel like Finn! Fuck, they’re going to kill _Finn_!"

...

[You ready, Friend-Finn? Targeting systems will guide you. We might be able to knock that section free.] At the very least it would blow a hole in the hull, allowing Poe and Rey a quick exit.

"Go, Bee," Finn said as he slammed down into his seat, one arm still held tight to his chest, the baby a warm bundle against his sternum. "We're coming for you, Poe. Rey, sweetheart, please. I love you, I'm not dying any time soon, and neither are you. Don't do this to us, Rey. _Please_ ," Finn said over the comm.

If he could have grabbed her and shaken her out of it, he would have. What was she doing? Didn't she realize there was no winning this one?

"Rey, you can't just abandon us. You can't! It's not _fair_!"

There was still no answer, just the sound of Poe panting and Rey destroying things.

"Snap out of it, Rey! Come back!" Finn demanded, as BB-8 piloted them closer, using his vitals tracker to locate Poe.

Poe grabbed Rey’s arm as she took a swing, and she rounded on him. Poe flinched back, but Finn's voice was crackling over the comlink, and Rey's vision suddenly cleared. The rage gave way to despair.

"Oh, Force. Poe. _Finn_."

Poe pulled her to him, into a tight embrace, nudging her lightsaber off as he took her hand. "We have to go," he said, having wasted three seconds on that embrace.

"This is going to be bad, Poe," she said, her voice low and tired.

“I know,” he whispered, cradling her head like he could protect it from what was about to happen.

"Get down!" Finn suddenly shouted, and then there was fire everywhere.

Poe dropped himself and Rey to the floor, holding onto a pipe, but then the pressure changed, and they were being sucked out into space. "Shit! Shit!" Poe cried, and Rey _screamed_ and tried to hold her head.

Arms locked around Rey, Poe craned his neck to see where they were headed. The good news: toward the _Falcon_. The bad news: they were careening through open space at an alarmingly high speed.

"Fuck! BB-8! Open the hatch!"

[Which one?]

"All of them!" he said, as they headed towards the _Falcon's_ hull.

It was a good thing Finn was still in his suit, because BB-8 opened all the hatches, angling the _Falcon_ so that they didn't splat against the hull but skidded across it. Poe reached out and finally grabbed hold of something, and pulled Rey along with him. She was sobbing, and had cut herself off from them in an attempt to protect them, but it was already bad.

"We're in!" Poe cried, as they slammed into the artificial gravity, and BB-8 sealed the doors.

[Master-Poe, I need you!] BB-8 cried.

Poe glanced down at Rey, who was curled into the fetal position, but if he didn't get them out of here in—well, he’d completely lost count, but he was guessing something like three seconds—then they'd _all_ die.

Poe sprinted to the cockpit, yanking up on the yoke over BB-8 and slamming on the accelerator. He took them out in a tight spin, the exhaust coming from a tailspin the only thing that might save them from debris as the station rippled into flames behind them.

Finn skidded to a stop when he found Rey, a lurch moments later telling him where Poe had disappeared to. He gathered Rey into his arms, sitting on the floor with her in his lap, the baby resting between them. In the moment before Rey screamed, he closed his eyes and held her as tight as he could. "I'm here, I'm here, stay here, I love you, I've got you," he sobbed, shaking as Rey's scream cut off right in the middle and she went limp in his arms. "I love you, I love you so much, I love you," he kept saying. The _Falcon_ rocked dangerously and he huddled over Rey and the baby as if to protect them.

Poe rode out the last of the aftershocks, alarms blaring across the console as they took damage. Surely the ghost of Han Solo would be after him, now.

As Rey's screams finally cut off, Poe removed and threw away his helmet and burst into tears. There would be a lot more ghosts haunting him, now. Ten thousand of them, to be exact.

When the shaking calmed, distantly, Finn heard three sets of breathing in the helmet he'd yet to remove. Finn stayed as he was, Rey perfectly still in his arms. "Poe," he whimpered, needing to comfort him and needing to be comforted.

"I'll be right there," Poe said, taking the _Falcon_ in a 360 to look for...anything. A floating tank with a baby still inside, a piece of the station, anything, but no. Nothing.

[I can handle the _Falcon_ , Master—]

"Gods, don't call me that, Bee," Poe gasped, and rested a hand on their dome. He sniffed. "I'm sorry I scared you, bud." Hells, the last time BB-8 had called him 'Master-Poe,' he was telling his droid ‘I'll come back for you. It will be all right.’

Poe’s legs were carrying him back to where he had left Rey crumpled on the floor. Finn was holding her now, weeping quietly. Rey was silent, unmoving.

Poe took a careful breath, and pulled Finn against his chest. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Finn."

"Careful," Finn said as Poe's arms wrapped around him. With his arms still holding Rey, Finn couldn't remove his suit, which meant he couldn't rearrange the baby to keep him from being jostled. And he was so small and so fragile and he was the only one left, out of all of those clones and all of those little lives, he'd saved just this one. "My suit, Poe, help me get it off," he said, shifting Rey just a little.

"Hang on, hang on, let me help—Rey—" Poe stammered, easing Rey's helmet off and supporting her on Finn's thigh, wondering at Finn's strange urgency when Rey was unconscious and could be dying from a Force-aneurysm or something.

And then Finn's chest made a noise, a small choking sound.

"Oh my gods," Poe said, pulling back. "Oh my gods. Is that—?"

Finn had got one. He saved one.

A dark, shiny, bald head emerged as he opened the suit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are so sorry.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are obviously not doctors (not that kind of doctor, anyway) so apologies for any medical inaccuracies!

"Oh stars, oh skies, Finn.”

Poe felt faint, but he stubbornly held onto consciousness and eased the bundle away from Finn. The baby was sticky, and wasn't moving, and after the small cough he wasn’t breathing, and now he was turning _blue_ and he was really _cold_. "Fuck. Fuck," he said, and rushed the baby to the galley. “Breathe, damn it,” he said, turning him over and patting his back, as hard as he dared, and then there was another cough and a gasp, and a single small weary sob. “Oh, thank the Force.” Poe filled the sink with warm water, trying to get the poor thing clean and warm again. It was so small. He. He was so small. Gods, he had Finn's nose, Poe realized as he turned him back over in his hands.

Finn stumbled to his feet with Rey in his arms, trying to remember where the medbay was. "Bee, buddy, where can I take her?" he asked, and rather than giving him directions that they knew he couldn't follow, BB-8 used the ceiling lights to point the way. Oh, yeah. Here.

[Friend-Poe is in the galley. With...another life-form?] BB-8 asked, and Finn nodded.

"I took one. Of the—clones. He was the only one I could save, and he's... He isn't very strong."

[I can com Friend-Doctor-Kalonia?] they suggested.

"Can you do that from here?" Finn asked.

[I will get an encrypted sublight communication through] BB-8 said fiercely. [Friend-Poe is helping him. I will send him to you when the clone is warm enough to be moved.] The lights stopped at a door along with BB-8's voice, and Finn arrived at the small corner where there was a single medical bed and various first aid supplies. He gently laid Rey down on the bed and focused on tending to her, unable to do or even think about anything else without feeling a sickening, dizzying feeling when he remembered—

No. Rey first, everything else later. He tucked a blanket carefully around her after reassuring himself that her pulse was strong and regular, if a little fast.

"Finn?" Poe asked suddenly in a panic, realizing he was alone, realizing he’d gone into survival mode and hadn’t yet properly questioned what was happening. "How did you—can you hear me?"

[All comlinks are on] BB-8 said, their binary echoing through a few points—one of them still in his suit. Poe tried detaching one glove while holding the baby in the warm water. He was holding a premature-tank-clone-baby in a kitchen sink, and he would have thought it surreal except he had no idea what the fuck he was doing and it was too scary to think of anything else. He was sure the baby was going into shock, and panic clawed at him. _You can't lose this one, too_ , he told himself, as though nine-thousand nine-hundred and ninety-nine ghosts was really all that different from ten thousand. Gods, this was the defective baby, too, with one arm, that the computer had asked him if he wanted _destroyed_.

"How's Rey?" he asked, washing the baby as gently as he could. He didn't know what to do with the umbilical cord, so he left it, floating in the water. The baby didn't open his eyes, or couldn't, and he was definitely gasping. "Um. Can you come here, Finn? Please? Bring me a life support unit?" he was trying not to sound as panicked as he felt.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm on my way," Finn called, grabbing an oxygen mask from a cabinet. He made it to the galley in record time, he was sure, and there was Poe holding the baby so carefully and looking utterly panicked. "Here," Finn said, thrusting the oxygen mask at him with shaking hands.

"No. Just. Hold it in front of his face and turn it on," Poe said. "Please. He's too small to wear it." That much was obvious. "Uhh, I don't know—we need to keep him warm. And—I’m not sure what we could feed him... _How the fuck do we have a baby, Finn_?" he finally spluttered, looking up for the first time. Finn looked a hundred years older in the eyes.

"I couldn't save all of them," was all Finn could find to say. He held the mask as close to the baby's mouth as he could, but it practically covered his entire face. "I couldn't save them, so I saved him." He was staring at the little face behind the mask, the eyes screwed shut as he gasped for breath. "Please, little one, be okay, please. You're safe, baby, we'll help you, but you gotta try, little one. You have to try," he begged. "Come on, you're stronger than you know, I promise you are."

And it was like the baby did hear him, heard or felt in Finn sameness or comfort (or simply human contact) (Poe realized with a start that he hadn't been _talking_ to the baby, which was stupid), because he managed a good breath that time, Poe felt it in his hands, the swelling of fragile ribs, and he laughed, emotion bubbling up into a giggle that this situation didn't exactly merit. "That's it, champ. Keep talking to him, Finn. I think that helps. Can you get me some towels? Clean towels. We need to get him warm and dry and bundled up. And we'll make a call to Dr. K. or...someone." He wiped sweat out of his eyes on his elbow. "And see if Rey's okay. She shouldn't wake up alone."

"Good baby, you can breathe, you've got it. See, I said you were strong. You're a strong baby," Finn said, and stepped away for a moment to grab as many towels as he could find. "He's breathing, Poe, I can't—he’s really breathing, all on his own!" He smiled, but it was a watery smile and he was definitely crying still, sniffling and taking great gulping breaths. "You're a good baby, little guy. We'll get you to Dr. K. and she'll fix you up and—and you'll be okay," he said as Poe lifted him out of the water and dried him. Finn helped wrap the baby in layers of  towels, and when that didn't seem sufficient, he added his shirt and ran into the hall to grab the jacket he'd discarded to put his suit on earlier. He brought it back and tucked it around Poe's arms and the baby.

Poe laughed, for Finn's eyes were shining, and he took a moment to pray to the Force and every god he'd ever heard of for the life of this baby—for Finn's sake. "Okay, yeah, good. As awesome as it is to see that my jacket suits him, too, if we have something softer? Warmer? Hang on, idea," Poe said, supporting the baby's head and holding him against his chest (Poe had since wriggled out of his suit). "Can you get me my Academy sweatshirt? It's nice and soft, we can put him in that."

Soon, it was done, and the baby was effectively bundled and warm and even making noises. They kept the air near, and Poe handed him off to Finn. "Just support his head, good, Finn," Poe said, and he smiled, and _now_ it hit him, watching Finn holding this little bundle of joy. This kid had to make it. They needed him. He _loved_ this baby. "Okay, let's go—sit with Rey, okay? And I'll call the Doc." He guided Finn to the medbay, where Rey was still unconscious, and his heart broke all over again. There were still tears wet in her eyes, and her face was pinched. He kissed the tears away and made short work of getting her out of the uncomfortable pressure suit and bundled up in blankets, finally settling Finn next to her, slinging the jacket over Finn's shoulders. "Okay. Okay," he said. "You okay here? I'll com the Base." They really weren't supposed to do that, but fuck protocol in the ass right now, honestly. He was calling Base.

"Yeah, just...Don't leave for too long? Bee said they’ll get a communication through," Finn said, though it occurred to him after he spoke that Poe probably knew this already. "Poe? I love you," he said as Poe stepped away. _Don't go_ , he wanted to say, _stay here, I almost lost you_. But Poe need to contact Base. So all Finn said was, "I love you."

Poe walked back into the room and held the back of Finn's head tenderly as he kissed him. "I love you, too," he said. _I'm sorry we couldn't save them all. I'm sorry I almost didn't make it out. I'm sorry I almost couldn't get Rey out._ "I'll be right back," he said instead.

They had to transmit individual messages to base and back, in the end. Even encrypted, they wouldn't let a call through, so it took a bit longer. The baby could be given a few milliliters of warm bantha milk since they had no formula, but it wasn't safe to take him to any hospital, so the order was _Hurry Home_.

Which was fine with Poe. He set the course, shaving off as many parsecs as he possibly could. It was much faster going home by a straight shot, careening through the Core at lightspeed, no matter the risk. By now BB-8 had settled, and wanted to see the baby, and once they were safely in hyperspace, man and astromech returned to the medbay.

"Hey, Finn," Poe said. "How we doing?"

"She still hasn't woken up. I can't tell when he is or isn't awake, but he's breathing okay still. Are we going home?" he asked pathetically, wanting that above everything else, but well aware they might have to stop for the sake of the baby. "Are Luke and the General okay?" he added, because they surely would have felt the deaths of so many, like Rey had.

"We are definitely going home," he said, "but it’s going to be twelve hours. I shaved off as much as I could, but the Falcon is hobbling." Poe first went to Rey, kissing her and brushing her hair back, but she didn't stir. With a sigh of concern, Poe turned to Finn and the baby. He pulled up a chair, letting Finn lean against him, and wrapping an arm around the baby. "I didn't ask about the General and Skywalker," Poe said. "I assume they're okay. Further out, not Force-bonded to..." But he didn't finish that. Instead he brushed a hand over the tender head, now seeing that there were fine, dark curls there. "Oh gods, Finn," he said, after a minute, and tears flooded down his face. "He's so..." _Small_. "Cute." He gave a wet laugh.

"He's so small," Finn said, agreeing, not moving a muscle more than he had to to lean on Poe for fear of disturbing the baby. "All of the clones should have had this," he found himself saying, and he ducked his chin to his chest as, all over again, his eyes welled with tears and his breath caught in his chest. "It's not fair," he said softly.

"I know," Poe said, closing his eyes and pressing his forehead against Finn's. They were both weeping openly now. " _You_ should have had this, too," he said, chest constricting.

There was a small honk behind him: BB-8 had been forgotten, and Poe slowly pulled away from Finn. "Oh, sorry, Bee. BB-8 wants to see him," he explained to Finn. "Can you lean down or you want me to take him?"

Finn thought about this, then handed him off, seeming at once wistful and relieved. Poe dropped to a knee so BB-8 could get their lens in close, and the child gave a small yawn.

BB-8 looked up at Poe. [It is a small Finn model? It is very cute.]

Poe smiled. "Yeah. He is cute. Just like Finn."

BB-8 looked up at Finn. [I am glad. We shall keep him.]

"Bee!" Poe exclaimed.

[Well, all right. We should ask Friend-Rey. Who is waking up...]

Finn had to laugh at this exchange, even if it was through a snotty nose and puffy eyes and a tired, drained yawn. When he glanced over at Rey, she had her eyes open, but she didn't look really...there. "Rey? You with us?" he asked, somewhat alarmed, and she nodded. Okay, so she was somewhat aware of where she was. "What do you need?" Finn asked, and she finally tore her eyes away from the middle ground to look at him, the answer clear _. I need for that to have all been a bad dream..._

And then she started crying, at first only a few tears, and then heaving sobs so bad she gagged and was nearly sick, and the whole time all Finn could do was hold her and remind her that they were there and she wasn't alone and they'd done what they could and it was horrible that it hadn't been enough, and no consolation now that they'd tried their best in the face of a hopeless situation. And even that stopped when he choked up and buried his face in her hair to keep himself under some semblance of control.

"Oh, oh Rey," Poe said. "Finn, loves." Poe nuzzled his way in there, holding the baby with one arm so he could wrap an arm around Rey as she sobbed and _broadcasted_ her pain and Poe was watching them all die all over again. 

It startled them all when a fourth cry joined theirs. Rey gasped, hiccuping on a sob, and Poe and Finn both looked down.

"Oh my gods," she said. "I-is that—?"

Poe nodded. "It is. Finn saved him. I don't know how...or if he'll...but we're hoping. Headed home now. I'm _sorry_ , sweetheart."

Rey sniffed, and touched the baby's head, but the baby kept crying, weak, pathetic little noises, like he was too tired to cry properly and was really only moaning sadly.

"Hey, bud, it's okay," Poe soothed. "Okay, we need like a...syringe? And some warm bantha milk. I can go—you guys want to come with?"

"We'll come," Rey said immediately, because where that baby was going, she was going, and clearly Finn had the same idea. And neither of them wanted to let Poe or each other out of sight, so Rey staggered to her feet and wrapped a blanket around her shoulders. "I have some kind of milk in a box, if he can drink that kind," she said, and Finn looked over at her in confusion. "It's dry. You add water to it," she explained.

Poe winced. "I don't..." He laughed nervously. "Okay my experience with babies is in non-survival situations with babies who aren't premature and in danger of going into shock," he said, voicing all his fears before he had a chance to temper them, which he immediately regretted. "Bee, can you holonet that for me?" He asked. "Can babies drink...what is it, powdered bantha milk?" In the kitchen, he frowned at the box. "Let's try it, diluted, and warm, and he won't drink much. Do we have a syringe? A turkey baster?"

Rey laughed, also nervous, and rummaged through her drawers until she happened upon a small syringe. "Will this do?" Her hands were still shaking, but having something to _do_ helped.

Poe looked at it. "Yeah, that...should be fine," he said, praying he wasn't about to kill this child as Finn heated the water and mixed less than half of the required dehydrated milk powder in.

[Bantha cow milk made from powder will not harm Friend-Small-Finn] BB-8 reported. [According to 87 out of 99 sources. Not ideal but acceptable.]

"BB-8, you can't call him that," Poe said with a small smile.

BB-8 gave the droid equivalent of a sigh. [Very well. Friend- _Tiny_ -Finn] they said, and Finn smiled. "He _is_ very tiny," he said, and BB-8 chirped. Finn went and sat down once the milk was warm, exhausted and anxious about getting in the way. But the galley was so small he could watch with interest as Poe sorted out the syringe.

Sitting lasted approximately thirty seconds before, in the way or not, Finn resumed hovering over Poe, Rey, and the baby.

"Do either of you want to hold him?" Poe asked, but Finn and Rey both shook their heads, looking as worried as he'd ever seen them outside of a dangerous situation, and Poe bit down a laugh. "That's okay, you can touch him from right there. Hop up on the counter," he said, "and hold this."

Okay, feeding a baby. He had done this plenty of times. Poe had sixteen small cousins and, last time he was home, twenty-three "nieces" and "nephews" or whatever you called kids under five in your extended family and friends network. And Poe _loved_ babies. But there was a lot of _pressure_ on this one, not just because Finn and Rey were looking at Poe like he was their only hope, but because Poe _was_ this poor fucking kid's only hope, and this kid needed to live, because Poe also wanted a chance to teach Finn and Rey how to feed a baby, and Poe wanted to teach the kid how to ride a hoverbike and he wanted to kiss his ouchies and tell him how to impress girls (and/or boys) at school, someday teach him how to feed a baby in turn.

Because Poe already loved him. And Finn loved him. And Rey loved him. Even though it was too soon. It was _dumb_.

He shifted the baby in his arms and took the syringe back from Rey's hands. The baby was still crying. "Hey, shh, it's okay, kiddo. Got some good stuff for you, here. Some nice fake milk from a nice fake nipple, just til we get you home... _atta boy_..." he cooed and whispered encouragements until the baby finally latched on, and sort of suckled.

Poe realized he could breathe again.

"He's hungry," Finn said as the baby got a taste of the milk and kept suckling, insofar as he could on the syringe.

"What happened to his hand?" Rey asked curiously as he shifted his little fist and his little misshapen arm in an adorably uncoordinated way.

"Yeah, he is, thank the stars," Poe said, though after every suck he required a slight adjustment so he would be interested in suckling again. He stared at the twitching limb. "I don't know. He was...I mean, the First Order considered him defective." Poe blinked up at Finn. "Is that how you got him free?"

"Yeah," Finn said, touching the little arm gently with a single finger. The baby flinched from the contact and paused suckling, and Finn held his breath. He didn't let it back out until the baby returned to eating. "His tank was already halfway off the wall... So I ripped it off and then tore it open to get him out." His hands were probably going hurt from all of that, and he was probably lucky hadn't cut himself on anything. He didn't care. If nothing else, this one tiny life would at least know comfort and touch and a full belly for…whatever time he had. And he would know love, even if he wouldn't understand it, because it was clear from the way they were all watching him with teary eyes and soggy smiles that they loved him. "I had to do something. I had to _try_."

"You did a lot more than try," Rey said, slipping a protective arm around Finn, and touching his wrists, gently coaxing them away from the baby so she could get a look at his hands. They were shaking, but hers were, too. Other than some bruising and a few broken fingernails, he looked fine. She kissed his knuckles. "I'm sorry," Rey whispered, after a long silence. "I almost let my hate...consume me again. And it would have killed me before I snapped out of it if you hadn't..." She laughed dryly. "All the First Order has to do is keep getting me _mad_ , and I'll get myself killed or end up worse than Kylo."

Poe actually laughed. "Oh, no. You have to _start out_ an entitled loser to end up like him. And I'm pretty sure no one's dying on Finn's watch." He leaned in to kiss her cheek, and then Finn's. "Hey, it's okay. We're all okay." The baby had stopped suckling now and was going slack in sleep, so Poe put the milk down (he hadn't finished even half of what Poe had expected him to finish, but at least he’d finished something) and shifted him to burping mode, but a few gentle taps produced nothing, and he was so small and fragile Poe was worried to burp him any harder.

"That’s right. No one’s dying if I have any say in it," Finn said. He put one arm over Rey's shoulder and one around Poe and pulled them both close, turning them toward him so the baby—sleeping now, and Finn readjusted the mask to tuck it between the baby's face and Poe's chest—was in the middle. He rested his forehead against both of theirs. "We're okay," he repeated like a mantra. "I love you. I love _him_ ," he added, almost afraid to say the last, lest the baby not make it. He looked down at the sleeping bundle. "Little one. You're so strong, I promise," he told him.

[Friend-Tiny-Finn needs Dr. Kalonia. I will transmit his condition, if we have sensors small enough for him.] BB-8 said, and Finn realized they kept forgetting the little droid in their worry and mourning.

"Bee," he said, and opened his arms. Knowing precisely what this body language meant, BB-8 rolled into his arms and let Finn hug them and lean on them, purring their machine purr.

"And now we're on the floor," Poe commented, grinning as BB-8's metallic purr soothed them all. He glanced at Finn, worried. "Let's...if he makes it to Nkllon, I'm sure he'll be fine," he said, and pointed to the medkit. There was a med sensor, which he activated and set to BB-8’s frequency. "Okay, bud, you reading this?"

[Affirmative. Friend-Tiny-Finn—] but they corrected at a glare from Poe: [I mean, the infant, is uninjured, except for the malfunctioning arm. Blood oxygen levels within normal range. Blood pressure low. Body temperature within normal but low.]

Poe sighed. "Okay, we can get him warmed up, that should be easy," he said, tucking the baby closer and covering his head. He was nonresponsive now, but that was probably because he was sleeping. That was at least what Poe was going to tell Finn and Rey.

[Friend-Poe, your vitals are also suboptimal...] BB-8 said softly. No wonder, Finn thought, the day they'd had. It was a miracle that the baby was the only one who had started going into shock. [You should all eat to maintain your blood glucose and hydration levels] BB-8 added. Finn did not want to eat, and he could tell by how Rey scrunched down into an even tinier ball that she wanted none of it either, but BB-8 was not wrong.

"What if we move this party back to the galley where it's warm?" he asked, "I'll have juice, BB-8. And water and some crackers if that will make you happy," he told them as they started scolding. Finn wondered if Poe had at some point installed a mother hen routine in his astromech.

"I kinda want to cook," Poe said suddenly. It would take his mind off things, would give him something to _do_ , and it would warm up the cabin. It also made him feel better when he knew he was taking care of Rey and Finn. At least he could take care of _them_ right. They moved to the galley, where Poe asked, "You guys could hold him, or help, or both? I can work one-handed, too. BB-8 can play some music for us, and we can talk." Anything to get their minds off the horrors they had just witnessed. Fuck, and it had been such a great morning. They had been _laughing_! Poe had laughed at the idea of blowing up another Death Star...

"Hey," Rey said, touching his face, which must have shown where his thoughts had gone. "I'll help you." She put on a brave smile as they reached the galley. "I can cut some onions so we all have the excuse."

Poe laughed and nodded.

"Hold that thought," Finn said, and darted from the galley. He returned minutes later with every blanket and pillow he'd been able to find. These he dropped in a heap in the corner. "Now we'll be warm," he said as Rey dropped on the pile and wound into them.

"Awesome," Poe said, and found an onion to toss down, and a cutting board. Rey always had a knife on her, often several, so "Small diced," he said, getting out a pan and oil. When he turned back, it was okay to cry because both Rey and Finn already were, and they could blame it on the onion and keep the oxygen pointed in the baby's face to protect him from the smell. After onions he needed potatoes, carrots, and celery and mushrooms, and they didn't need to ration anymore so he put plenty of chicken and the quadduck he had planned to save for a romantic dinner, added water, and stirred. Part of him knew it wasn't a good idea to cook with an infant in his arms, but it was warm over the stove, and so much of him was just saying "fuck it. Fuck it all." Soon he joined them on the floor, letting Rey clean his hand before he checked on their infant. "Uh. No change," he reported.

"He's still breathing," Finn said, not sure if this was reassurance or merely a statement of fact. "We could sing for him, or tell him a story," he suggested, because if they didn't talk he was going to start thinking and if he started thinking he was going to start crying again, and he was too tired.

"Yeah, we could sing." Poe had brought his quetarra, but honestly now that Finn and Rey had shown the slightest disinclination to hold the infant, Poe was glad not to put him down. "Uh, that one Finn likes," he said, and started singing, and Rey picked it up quickly, and after a few verses, Finn joined, too:

"Long live the pioneers  
Rebels and mutineers  
Go forth and have no fear  
Come close the end is near  
And I say hey, hey hey hey  
Living like we're renegades..."

The singing seemed to get a small reaction from the infant, if only a very small one. His eyes scrunched harder closed, like he was about to wake up and wasn't a bit happy about it, but then he sighed and relaxed and went back to sleep.

"I think we surprised him," Finn said with a soft smile. Very gently, he brushed a finger against the baby's cheek. "How often should he eat? Do we wake him up in a little while?" he asked, shifting as Rey scrunched down against his other side and leaned partially across his chest. He kissed the top of her head as she rested her cheek against his chest and wrapped an arm around his waist. She was still a little shaky, and as he glanced down at her, she wiped a tear away from her cheek and went back to watching the baby.

"Yeah, every few hours," Poe said, hoping the baby _would_ wake up again. "He leaned back against the cabinet and rubbed the baby's back gently. "Uh. Someone want to try the soup?"

Rey got up, sniffling and wiping her face, and tasted it. "It's good," she said, and it took Poe a minute to realize she was saying 'It's yummy' rather than 'it's done'. Then she grinned. "You made it spicy, Poe Dameron."

Poe blinked. "You let me cook while emotionally compromised, Rey Soon-to-be-Dameron."

"Stay there, I'll bring you bowls," Rey said, her contribution to caring for her loves. She spooned soup into a bowl for Finn and a mug for Poe, brought them over, then returned a moment later with a bowl of her own. She curled up next to Finn again and balanced her soup on her knee to let it cool a little bit. "I'm making caf when I'm done with my soup," she announced.

Poe was grateful for the mug, which allowed him to eat one-handed. "Sounds good," he said. "Good as I slept last cycle, which, for the record, feels like it was sixteen years ago, I'm not sure I need to sleep for a week." This was an exaggeration, though he had slept like the dead last night. "Hah, that has got some heat," he admitted, about the soup, after another sip. "You can add some cheese to it if you want, Finno."

Rey wasn't sure she'd ever sleep again, not when it felt like even her bones would remember that _moment_ , the mental pain so bad it had become physical, a burning that left her hollow. There would be a scar, even if no one could see it.

"Rey?" Finn said gently, and she blinked. "Your soup will get cold."

"Sorry," she mumbled, and Finn kissed her hair.

"It was…bad, wasn't it?" Poe whispered, touching Rey's knee. He was grateful that his experience of those deaths was with an ethical detachment, not feeling their lives extinguished through the Force. Still, this was worse than Hosnia. More people had died in the Hosnian System—he had _known_ people who died on those worlds—but that had mostly just fueled his revolutionary fervor, his interest in stopping the First Order. He also hadn't really had time to grieve Hosnia. This, this senseless destruction of lives that hadn't actually begun just left him cold inside. And he couldn't imagine how it had been for Rey, who could _feel_ those lives.

She only nodded, staring off into space.

He nudged her again. "Drink your soup, buddy," he told her.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay yes we admit it. This is a kid!fic.

Rey finished her soup, and made caf, and when they were done with that she made another pot. Finn made the third, and Rey was about to make a fourth when BB-8 informed them that they were nearing base. They all remained silent and still for a minute, watching the infant in Poe's arms. He had only awakened for more food once, and though he was breathing, they couldn't get him to respond to their voices or to gentle touches.

None of them said it, but they all felt it: he was fading.

Rey only moved when Finn did, standing like an old woman with too many years on her shoulders. Finn and Poe were in similar states, barely even reacting as BB-8, bless his mechanical heart, helped her to land the _Falcon_ safely and lowered the main hatch.

Kalonia tried to talk to them, but they'd stopped speaking hours ago. When she gently took the baby from Poe, resting him on a tiny gurney and shouting orders to her assistants, it was like cutting a string. Finn didn't bother moving—he sat down hard right where he was, in the middle of the hangar.

Rey crouched on her knees next to him to put an arm around him. She reached blindly for Poe, drawing him to them, experiencing everything else from a numb distance. People crowded them, worried, because now the tears started again, and Rey had never wanted her parents like she wanted them now.

Finn, still just sitting there, hunched forward like he was going to be sick.

Poe's arm had cramped up entirely, because he hadn't let go of the kid once, so when he went to pick Rey up he did it with only one arm. "Hey, sweetheart, it's okay," he told her. "Guys, could we get a minute?" he demanded from the crowd. "Snap," he begged, and, bless him, Snap read his mind and began shooing people away. Jess dropped to her knees in front of Finn.

"Finn," she said, and pulled him into a hug. She didn't ask how it had gone, though many questions burned for answer. "Where do you want to go?" she asked, but even that was too big of a question.

"We're going to medical," Poe said, pulling Rey against his chest and lifting her bodily.

"Are they hurt?" Jessika demanded, checking under Finn's jacket for blood or injury before helping him to his feet. "Whoa, we're okay. If you need to puke, aim that way, seriously, these are new shoes and I might have to hurt you," she teased gently, helping him walk.

The waiting room was empty, which meant all the doctors were busy with the baby.

"Poe," Jessika said.

"Jess," Poe said, pulling her out into the hall. "Stay with them, okay? There was a—" he pressed his lips together, trying not to cry. What could he even tell her? Where should he begin? "It was bad. That—that’s a baby, in there. We need him to be okay. And—I’m going to go make my report to the General, is she back?"

"Yeah, they came back early, arrived right before you did. Poe, she _knew_ something was wrong."

"Yeah. It was—that big. Stay with them, for me?"

"Sure, Poe. Do _you_ need anything?"

Poe laughed, almost manic. "Yeah. I need for you to stay with them ‘til I get back."

Jessika frowned, but nodded. "Got it."

…

To his credit, Poe managed to get through his entire after-action report to the General and her brother before he burst into tears.

Luke immediately got up and went to him, touching his shoulder. But at a nod from Leia he left, needing to see his Padawan. It was worse than he feared…

Leia laid a hand on the back of Poe’s neck and waited until the sobs died out on their own.

"The First Order can't go on like this," she said. "The Force doesn't work like that. The _universe_ doesn't work like that. They will pay for it. We will make them pay." 

Poe sniffed, but didn't say anything. He was suddenly more exhausted than sad, and what she said didn’t exactly make him feel better _now_. He had been angry after Hosnia. He wasn’t now.

"Go be with Rey and Finn right now, Poe. Take as much time off as you need."

...

Luke entered the medical wing with two steaming cups of tea to find Rey and Finn leaning on each other, with Jessika Pava kneeling at their feet, speaking softly to them.

"Master Skywalker!" she said, lurching to her feet.

"At ease, Testor. I...came to relieve you."

"I'd...like to remain, sir."

Luke smiled and nodded. "Sorry I only brought two cups of tea, then."

Now it was his turn to crouch in front of Rey and Finn. He waited, but neither said anything, or even looked at him. "Drink this," he instructed.

Finn reached for the tea and drank it almost mechanically, in one of his ruts where following orders felt good because it was easy (he’d hate himself for it later).

Next to him, Rey also took her tea, but didn’t drink, and they both stopped staring at the floor to look at Luke.

"Master Luke, we tried..." Rey told him, and he put his hand on her shoulder. "Finn saved one, but there were so many—"

"And he's so small, and he's sick," Finn added, and hiccupped on a sob.

"All three of you did very well. Hush now, drink your tea. Poe told us," Luke said, and Rey and Finn both took a sip of tea. "You have given that baby the best chance they could ever have. No matter what else happens, or has happened, you three have given them that."

"Him."

Luke looked over at Finn in surprise.

"He's Finn's clone," Rey explained. For a moment, Luke looked positively furious, and his face clouded. But then he took a deep breath.

"They've unbalanced the Force, and it won’t last—which I know is hollow comfort now," he said, and sighed. "I'll wait with you," he said after a time, and when he turned to pull a chair closer, he found Jess standing there, eyes red, with two chairs. One, she pushed to him. The other, she pulled to Finn’s other side before curling up in it and putting an arm around Finn’s shoulders to touch Rey.

That was how Poe found them, his feet taking him automatically to medical. He remembered nothing of the walk.

"Hey," he said, trying to put on a brave face. He sat on Rey’s other side, reaching out to seek and give comfort. He tried to speak a few times, but gave up.

"I'm going to go get some food for you guys, okay?" Jessika offered.

Poe nodded, more grateful than he could express, and she left.

Luke's presence soothed them, somewhat. Rey knew she had to talk to him, had to admit what happened, had to admit that she would even now embrace the Dark Side if it would let her destroy the First Order, but he felt like he already knew and forgave her.

They didn't wait much longer, as Dr. Kalonia came out, a nurse wheeling out a small clear box. To Rey it looked like a coffin, and to Finn it looked like one of those damned tanks, but Poe leapt up and rushed to her, hope naked on his face. "How is he?"

"He's alive," Dr. Kalonia said, and stepped back so Poe could get a better look. "And he seems to be about two weeks premature, but his lungs are fully developed, and his heart is working." She brought him closer to Finn and Rey, and Finn put his hand on the plastic, as if he could touch him. He'd just _stopped_ crying, but the baby was so small, and there was a little cannula on his face and he just looked so _fragile_. "He's strong, Finn. Like you. If anyone has a chance, it's him." Dr. Kalonia looked at each of them and smiled gently. "You did that for him."

Poe nearly burst into tears again at the sight of the infant, and though he barely managed to keep it together, he was still glad that Jess wasn't here to see him like this. "Oh, gods. He—is he going to be okay?" He blinked up at Dr. Kalonia, aware that bargaining was a stage of grief, but unable to stop himself. "Is there anything can we do? Equipment you need? We can watch him…"

Dr. Kalonia blinked, surprised, briefly, but—well, of course, these young soon-to-be-newlyweds, of course they would want the child as their own. And, legally, for what counted as law as far as Clones were concerned, the child was Finn's by right. "You can—you can hold him, if you like? I was going to have droids—" But that only earned her a death glare from all three of them. She would have to get the full report from Leia. "You can be in charge of looking after him, but he needs to stay here.”

They nodded, all three of them moving closer, and Dr. Kalonia decided something, all at once:

“Finn? Would you like to hold him? In cases of normal premature babies, the mother is the one we want to have the most physical contact with the child, but I think in this case you would be best. Skin-to-skin contact is ideal, even necessary." She put a hand on Poe's shoulder. "Though you did already get him to feed, and that's a big step. He's just eaten, but we have a formula he can have every two to four hours."

Poe let out a shaky breath in relief, and turned a smile to Finn. "How about it, buddy?"

Finn felt like he took the first easy breath he managed since they'd first found that ship. "I—of course. He'll be okay? I mean, I won't hurt him, will I?" he asked. Of course, he had held him earlier, but it had been dumb luck that he hadn't hurt him the way he'd been tearing around. "He's so little," he said.

"You'll be fine, bud, I promise. He wants to be held by you. You won't drop him," Poe said. This was easy. He had coached plenty of cousins and even Resistance crew on how to hold babies. "Take your shirt off and sit back." While Rey helped Finn undress, Poe and Dr. Kalonia maneuvered the baby against Finn's chest, navigating the cannula and some other wires that led to his chest and belly and his tiny arm.

"That's good," Dr. Kalonia said. "Lots of contact is good. Voices are really good for him. Considering how he was...grown, and with any complications, we just don't know, but this is the best thing for him. Human contact."

Finn smiled down at the top of the infant's tiny head. He was warm, now, a normal human temperature—actually, even warmer than that, it seemed—and the cannula was giving him enough air so that he wasn't gasping. "Doc says you're strong, baby, what did I tell you?" Finn asked, and the baby opened and closed his hand in his sleep, like he was trying to grab something.

Poe was beaming at Finn, tucking a blanket around the baby, and it took him a moment to notice Rey hanging back. He put an arm around her, pulling her into a hug.

Still smiling shyly, Rey touched his searching palm with a finger. She gasped softly as the chubby baby fingers closed around her finger and held on.

"He's wonderful," she said, and then looked surprised that she'd said it out loud.

"Of course he is. I mean, he's a tiny Finn, right? Just as wonderful, ten times as small."

Rey snorted at that, and leaned in, and Poe slid an arm around Finn, too. They were a family.

"And—he’s gonna be our kid, right? I'll just come out and say it, this is going to be our son—"

“No, don’t—” Rey pulled back. "Please don't say that," she begged. "What if he doesn't—"

Poe bit his lip. Kriff. There had been a reason _he_ didn't want BB-8 naming the kid, after all, and then he had to get excited and hopeful. _Dumb_. "But—he will," Poe forced. "He—he’s gotta." He wasn't stupid, things could go wrong, but he needed something to—oh, gods, now he'd messed it up. "Rey—" he said, stepping towards her, but she flinched and drew back.

"Rey," Luke said, startling them all, because they forgot he was there. "Walk with me."

Rey immediately hunched her shoulders, sure she was in for a lecture, or at least Luke's unreadable silence until she chose to tell him everything.

"Bring your tea," he told her as she moved to follow him. She watched him suspiciously as they left medical, but he was being inscrutable again. Classic Luke...

"Finish your tea, and then we will talk, you and I. But first you will listen. I have a story for you," he told her. She stopped at her hot tea and watched him out of the corner of her eye. "When I was training with Yoda, he sent me into a cave on Dagobah, an old thing full of the Dark Side. He told me two things before I went in: first, the only thing in there was what I took with me. Second, that I would need no weapons." He stopped and laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Naturally, I listened to _one_ of those things. I had somewhat of a selective hearing problem back then."

Rey managed a small smile around her tea.

"I fought Vader in that cave. I grew so angry, and so scared, that I cut his head clean off." Rey looked over at him in surprise. That was not the Luke she knew. "His helmet fell apart when it came detached from the rest of his uniform, but instead of seeing his true face—my father's face—it was mine." Rey was staring openly now, her tea held forgotten in her hands. "Drink your tea," Luke reminded her gently. "The cave showed me what I needed to see. If I let myself give in to the Dark Side, beating Vader would be easy. But it would also destroy _me_." Rey was back to staring at her tea as if it had turned to sand suddenly and unexpectedly.

"But then again, if I hadn't tapped into the Dark Side when I actually fought my father, and beat him, my father would have killed me. Obi-Wan even told me of an opponent named Darth Maul, whom he could not have defeated without the rage of the Dark Side. But the Dark Side preys on feelings of impotence, and then it eats at us. Using the Force because you are angry or afraid is different from using it _in_ fear. I guess what I'm saying is that anger in a moment— _passion_ —is not something you need to feel guilty for. That guilt is the Dark Side, too. A more insidious kind." He stopped them in the hall, laying his hands on her shoulders. "Being angry and sad is _correct_. We're past that Serenity-in-All bantha shit, Rey, you and I. You have a son, if you want him, and he needs you to love him and fight for him and fear for him and be frustrated with him. Your fiancés need that, too, I dare say," he added with a smile.

Rey sniffed, but she managed to look at him, and smile, and drank her tea again.

"On a more serious note. I sense that the Force is not done Speaking to you, yet, Rey You need to be open to it. Like you were on Takodana, even though it was frightening. It's okay to be afraid. Sometimes it's stupid not to be."

"But. I can't hear anything over the sound of...what happened. How do I ever forget that?" Rey asked, and Luke stopped walking to turn and face her.

"You don't. Sometimes in your quietest moments you'll swear it's so loud it's deafening," he told her honestly. "But it will eventually fade into an echo. It's different than simple grief, I'm afraid. Something like that leaves behind scars in the very Force that gives us our power. So you'll never be rid of it. But it will become bearable."

Rey looked up from their feet and Luke offered her a sympathetic smile. She sighed a little miserably—it was the answer she expected, but not the one she wanted. It made her angry that now this was a part of her, part of her life, and there was no way to separate it out and get rid of it. She was going to start crying again.

And then Luke stepped forward and hugged her, and she leaned on him for just a minute, her tears leaving a wet spot on the shoulder of his robes, and he held her until she pulled herself back together and stepped away.

"Thank you," she told him, and he smiled.

"Of course. Would you like to go back?"

"I really would," Rey replied. She had a son and two fiancés to smother with attention, after all.

"You know, if I had had a son, I would have called him Ben," Luke mused as they walked down the hall. He grinned. "Leia stole that one from me."

"Well, we're _definitely_ not naming this one Ben, no worries on that account," Rey said, and almost laughed.


	13. Chapter 13

As Rey and Luke returned, Poe lifted his head from where it had rested against Finn's shoulder, his nose pressed to the baby's head. He smiled, since Rey seemed better—and felt better—when she returned.

“Good talk?” Poe asked, when Luke had left, to give them some space.

Rey nodded. “He…said the Force isn’t done speaking to me, yet. Or something,” she said. But she looked tired, and Poe opened his arms so Rey could settle into them. He felt her relax against him, which helped him relax.

"Think the Force could tell you what we should name him?” Poe asked, saying it lightly, though it was the most serious subject on his mind right now. The point is, it was going to hurt _anyway_ if they lost him now. The name wouldn't make a difference, and the kid deserved a damned _name_. He made sure Finn had one minutes after meeting him, after all. 

[Friend-Tiny-Finn!] BB-8 voted loudly and at a high pitch, making them all laugh.

"Noted," Finn said, and the combination of his laugh and voice must have disturbed the baby, because he shifted and clenched his hand into a little fist and started whimpering. "Nooo, baby, it's okay! What's wrong?" Finn asked him, concerned.

Poe grinned—because the baby was cute and also because Finn freaking out was kriffing adorable.

"He's fine, Finno. I mean, we can only assume he'll be grumpy like you are when woken up unexpectedly," he teased. "But we can try some food. Why don't we let Rey hold him?"

"Oh—I—I don't think—" she stammered, but Poe slid her into the chair he had previously occupied, pulled her arm bindings off, and carefully orchestrated switching the baby. Now the little guy was crying in earnest, which Poe was _delighted_ about:

"Listen to those lungs! That’s a hungry cry. Hey, little guy, you're okay, it's just Rey. She's gonna give you some food..."

"Poe!" Rey protested, but she couldn't well drop him or give him back now. "He clearly doesn't want to be held by me."

"Give him a minute. Here. He'll want to be held by anyone with this," Poe said, angling the tiny bottle against the baby's mouth. Since he was crying, his mouth closed easily around the nipple, and he immediately gave suck. "That's it. You want to hold the bottle for him?"

Rey blinked in surprise as the crying suddenly stopped and nodded mutely, taking over holding the bottle. The baby seemed to have little awareness of his limbs, but once his hand touched Rey's arm, he rested it there. He whacked himself in the face with his other limb, and stopped sucking for a moment, in indignation or surprise, but Rey shifted slightly and he must have decided it wasn't worth being upset about, because he squirmed a little and resumed eating. Just holding him helped to fill the void left by the deaths of the others.

"He's...he's really cute," Rey said, already resigning herself to having a hard time telling this kid “no,” ever. He had to live, because she had to spoil him, to give him the childhood she hadn't had, give him safety and warmth and yes, occasionally toys for no reason other than she loved him. And hugs—she would give him so many of those.

"Of course he's cute," Poe said, sitting on the bed next to Finn to watch. "Have you met Finn?" he said, squeezing Finn's knee. He let the sight of Rey holding and feeding this tiny, weak thing do things to his heart, let it swell and weep and stop a few times.

When Jessika returned, bearing bags and bags of food, she made a noise that sounded like what Poe felt: a high-pitched, barely-contained squeal of delight. "Oh, gods, he's so cute! Oh! Oh!" she cooed, thrusting the food into Poe's hands so she could lean in to see the baby. 

"We're trying to keep a sanitary environment, Captain," Dr. Kalonia said. "Wash your hands if you just got back from the mess hall, please. Really, you should all sanitize yourselves as much as possible for the next few weeks, until his immune system is stronger."

Jessika all but fled to the bathroom to scrub up to her shoulders.

Rey grinned as Jess ran away to wash her hands, and was amazed that she was fine for a whole two minutes before she was back, arms scrubbed and nails spotless. She looked at Poe and Finn, who were looking through the bags of food, and left them to it, and joined Rey, sitting down next to her and smiling at the baby.

Rey, having never seen Jess quite this elated, gently shifted both baby and bottle so she could get a better look. "Look at his tiny little nose," Jess said, "And his fingers. Finn, he's way cuter than you. He's even cuter than Deeks, and if anyone tells the puppy that I said he was cute, I'll..." but it had been a bad day, and she didn't feel like making threats, even very joking ones. She made a squeaking noise as the baby fumbled the now-empty bottle away from his face and yawned cavernously. "FINN. YOU WERE SO CUTE. What happened?"

"Oh. Thanks!" Finn laughed, and it felt good to be happy for the moment.

"It’s true," Poe said, with his mouth full. "I'm not sure what happened, either." But he grinned and Finn permitted him to kiss him, and he returned to Rey's side. "Let me feed you?" He asked, since Rey was holding the baby very carefully with both hands. "And don't say you're not hungry, you love casserole day in the mess hall, Force only knows why." He held a bite in front of her face.

Rey still wasn't sure she felt like eating, but she allowed Poe to feed her several bites before shaking her head. Her stomach, still not really settled after the day they'd had, didn't feel like it would tolerate more at the moment. The multiple pots of caf probably hadn't helped... "I'll try again, just give me ten minutes," she told Poe when it looked like he might say something.

"You, too?" Finn asked, sipping at his tea instead, and she nodded.

"We have to be a good example for the kid," Poe said sternly, but even he had to admit he was forcing himself to eat. He left Rey alone for the moment. "I'm gonna hit the refresher," he announced, flexing his sore arm. Somehow, being sore from holding a baby for nine consecutive hours was even more awesome than being sore from marathon kinky sex with his supermodel-hot fiancé and fiancée. He was _definitely_ getting old. "And then I'm stealing him back, Rey."

"Oh, you'll get your turn," Dr. Kalonia said, thinking of her own experience with infants. "You might want to work out sleep schedules so he can be held as much as possible. We've got a deficit of human contact that needs to be made up for."

"I'm pretty sure none of us plans on sleeping ever again, so that will work out well," Finn said, only half kidding. Kalonia and Luke, who had mysteriously returned, both gave him looks that were deeply unimpressed.

"I know you don't want to sleep," Dr. Kalonia said, "But you have to."

"Not any time soon," Rey said. Dr. Kalonia and Luke looked at her. "I mean—we drank like four pots of caf on the way home, and Luke's been giving us tea..."

"Yep, you're going to be awake for awhile," Jess announced, "And then you're all going to crash."

Finn looked to Rey and the baby in concern. If they all crashed, who would hold him? He needed human contact!

"Okay, alright, fine, I'll babysit. Twist my arm," Jess offered.

Rey looked over at Jess and cracked a smile.

"You're positive? I mean, I could stay awake..."

"You mean you could drink more caf and give yourself heart palpitations. No, this is the only solution, I'll have to babysit, it's settled," Jess told her. "Rey. I'll be careful. I promise," she added seriously, and Rey gave her a shaky smile and a nod.

"How about," Poe said, already coming out of the refresher toweling off his hair. He knew well enough where the hospital clothes were, and had pulled on a pair of pants. "You let us have some family time, come back in four hours when we're dragging."

Jess pouted. "Well, okay. Um. Only if you explain where those bruises on your wrists..."

"And don't ask questions," Poe said with a light huff.

That startled a laugh out of Rey, which made the baby fuss against her chest. "Oh! Oh no, I'm sorry, little guy," she cooed, leaning in to kiss him.

"Okay, I'll go spread some gossip and be back," Jessika said with a wink.

Finn took Jess's seat so Poe could have the one on Rey's other side. The baby, calm now that he wasn't being disturbed, yawned and nuzzled his face against Rey's chest before falling back to sleep. "I think he likes you, Rey," Finn said. He rested his chin on her shoulder. "Can we move to the bed?" he asked. It was much better for cuddling, and it was right there, just right across the room.

"Okay, if you're going to be here on a semi-permanent basis, I'll need you out of the way," Dr. Kalonia said, and led them to an actual room.

"Hey, we've got proper _rooms_ now," Poe said brightly.

"Yes, but you can't _all_ sleep on these—" Dr. Kalonia sighed. "I mean, you _shouldn't_ all sleep on these beds." MT-7 wheeled in the plastic baby crib, and the apparatus that the baby was wired to, in behind him.

"You know us so well," Poe beamed, and turned to Rey. "Can I hold him, love? It's okay if you're good. We can help you get comfy."

"Yes, of course—I’ll go get in the refresher next," Rey answered, and gently handed the baby over to Poe. Finn climbed onto the bed and gestured for Poe to join him. As Rey stepped past the bed to get to the small bathroom, he reached out and took her hand, pulling her close and hugging her tightly. "I love you," he told her.

"I love you too—leave a space for me," Rey said to him and then kissed his forehead before stepping away.

Poe settled against Finn's side, the tiny form cooing in his arms. "He's so warm. That's good—I think. Want to feed him again?" Poe nudged his finger against the baby's lips. "Yeah, he's—oh yeah, he'll eat. He's gonna be mad that's not food. Sorry, buddy, don't hate me. Finn? Can you have MT-7 warm up the formul—oh! MT! Thanks, man," he said, accepting the small bottle.

[I will return every three hours] the droid reported.

"You want to feed him, Finn? Just, hold this up to his mouth." Poe blinked up at Finn, eyes and smile soft.

Finn took the bottle and gently held it to the baby's mouth, smiling all out of proportion when he latched right on. "He's so hungry," he said in awe. "We only just fed him!” But then again, sometimes when he hadn't slept time became a very relative thing. "When will we know he's okay? He seems so much better than he was," Finn said, because he had no frame of reference as far as what was normal.

"When Dr. K says we can take all this crap off of him," Poe said, nudging the cannula out of the way. "But—yeah. He's doing a lot better." He leaned up and kissed Finn's forehead. "I love you, Finn. I'm sorry about what happened. But—I’m grateful you got _him_. So, so grateful. He's beautiful, just like you. And we're going to give him a chance you never had. And we're going to love him, as much as I love you." Poe glanced up, and smiled at Rey, who stood at the door wet and shivering in a hospital robe. "Come here, beautiful."

Rey came to bed and curled next to Finn with a long sigh. "Okay, sweetheart?" he asked her. She shrugged one shoulder.

"My heart hurts again. I don’t know, I was fine, and now I'm not," she said. Finn put his arm around her and pulled her almost onto his lap.

"Well, lucky for you, you're just in time for the baby to finish his bottle!" Finn told her, and she brightened a little.

"Has he yawned yet?" she asked, and he shook his head. Rey looked up at Poe and blinked. "He has really cute yawns," she told him. "I've never been this close to a baby. I just—I saw them sometimes on Jakku. With their parents."

Poe winced slightly. "Well, this baby is going to be better taken care of than any baby on Jakku," he said firmly. "Best medical care short of Coruscant. And if he needs it, we'll fly to Coruscant." He leaned in and kissed him, and gave him a few cursory bounces until he gave a tiny burp. "Ew. Milk breath," he laughed, but pressed his face to his silky-soft head and silky-fine hair. "Oh, his head smells so good. Come here, Rey, just—lean in and just smell his head. And there's a blanket down there if you're cold."

Rey smiled and leaned in. The baby's head did smell oddly good, though she suspected it was partially a ploy so Poe could kiss the back of her neck and give her a gentle hickey there. Poe grinned up at Finn when his work was done.

"I'm not sure I want to sleep," Rey eventually said, once she was bundled up in the blanket. "But I am tired."

"You're sniffing an infant's head...which probably means you should sleep," Finn said. He combed his fingers gently through her hair. "Unless you want to wait until we can join you. There's no way Jess will manage to stay gone for four hours..." he said. But Rey already looked so sleepy, and she'd had the worst of it with her Force powers, so it wasn't precisely a surprise. "Here, come up here," he told her, and pulled her up to rest against his chest.

"Your heartbeat," she said softly.

"It'll remind you where you are if you do fall asleep," he told her. Next to them, the baby seemed to have had a similar idea—he’d scrunched around until he had his head right over Poe's heart.

Poe smiled at Rey and Finn, and then down at the top of the baby's head where it rested on his chest.

"He's so tiny," Finn whispered, marveling at the way Poe could cover his whole head with his palm.

"He's—yeah," Poe said. "I've honestly never held a baby this small before." It was dizzying, and _worrying_ , but Rey was giving him a Look and tried to give her a comforting smile.

She nodded and licked her lips. "So what are we going to call him?" It was a ploy to keep herself awake.

"Hmmmm...what about Han?" Finn asked, looking back and forth between them. Rey didn't look especially enthusiastic about this idea, but both of them looked over at Poe for further input. After all, he'd picked Finn's name, and had far more experience with small children and human names in general.

Poe felt a little dizzy. "Ahh," he said. "I'll—we can—think about it. I need to be taking enemy fire to come up with good names," he tried, forcing a grin and a wink. “Okay, you two need to sleep,” he said, a bit more firmly, and before they could say anything, he was humming, petting the baby’s head, and soon he was singing:

“In restless dreams I walked alone  
Narrow streets of cobblestone  
'Neath the halo of a street lamp  
I turned my collar to the cold and damp."

Rey sleepily joined in on the next verse, somehow instinctively harmonizing with him (probably, Poe suspected, this was a Jedi power):

"When my eyes were stabbed  
By the flash of a neon light  
That split the night  
And touched the sound of silence."

When Poe managed to look up again, both Rey and Finn's eyes were closed, and they looked so achingly beautiful Poe began praying to the gods he didn't actually believe in and the Force which he knew didn't work like that, demanding the life of this child (Han wasn't going to do it for him, who names a baby _Han_ , first of all, second, who names a baby after their boss's ex, and third, it was just too sad because he couldn't lose another Han) for them, for their sakes, in exchange for their lost childhoods.

Finn curled closer around Rey, seeking the comfort of close proximity and snuggling up close to her like she frequently did to him. Often, at the end of a long day, he found himself seeking her out in his sleep, not just physically. She was a familiar presence by now, if he mentally reached out to her, and he could usually find her without the help he'd required early on. Sometimes she accidentally ended up actually sharing whatever he was dreaming, but mostly he just took comfort from knowing she was there. This time, he found her easily, and he felt himself relax as if he was leaning on her.

It was so nice for Rey to be inside Finn's mind, because no matter what he tried to tell them to the contrary, he was just so good and unselfish at his core, open and loving and warm with less of the sharp edges that she and Poe had in spades. It felt good to comfort him, and accept his comfort in turn.

And this baby was—the same, and yet not. Rey couldn't feel the child dreaming or thinking, and though her experience was limited, she didn't think it was just because he was a baby, which made her worried and more than a little sad.

Now that she was concentrating on the baby, Finn responded, his mind humming softly against hers, pleased and _happy_ in spite of the gnawing worry, happy that the baby was safe with them.

(For now, they all thought, and hated that they thought.)

But the baby was safe _now_.

_In her dream, Finn was holding the child in his strong arms, protective and loving. Except those weren't Finn's arms at all. They were thinner, paler, but not Poe's arms, either, because they were untattooed, and this man's arms were joined by a woman's arms, darker even than Finn's, and they were singing in a language Rey didn't understand. They were surrounded by potted plants and what looked to Rey like scientific equipment, and exquisite artwork hung on the walls. The woman wore spectacles, but beneath them her face seemed startlingly familiar. The house was lit by soft lanterns. It was so beautiful, and peaceful, and she wanted to stay here forever._

_(Rey began to wonder whether this was one of Finn's dreams or a Force Vision of her own or a very deep memory—and if the latter, was it she who was seeing it or Finn?)_

_The noise of a TIE fighter sailing past overhead startled her, and interrupted the singing. The man and the woman looked at each other. There was a hail of blaster fire and the sound of screaming, breaking glass, and Rey shifted in her sleep, or else Finn did, and the baby was wrenched from the arms of his parents, adding to the screams._

_'Sam! SAM! My baby, no, Sam!' she heard, until the screams were suddenly, tragically, cut off._

While Rey and Finn dozed for a few hours, Poe was left alone with the baby and the beeping machines. He tried out a few names, whispered against the baby’s soft skull, but there were none that didn't hurt, none that felt right, so he was mostly alternating singing and kissing the baby's head.

He sensed before he heard Rey or Finn having a nightmare—something in how they felt across their Force bond was strained and unhappy—and then Finn was whimpering and Rey shifting until he worried she was going to fall off Finn's lap.

He was just about to shake them awake when they both sat up in the same instant, jostling him and the baby slightly. "Whoa!" he cried. "You guys okay?" Maybe sleep really wasn't a good idea for them right now, after all.

Finn looked at Rey and saw the same wild-eyed panic there that he felt. "What the hell," he said flatly, and she blinked several times as if getting her bearings.

"What just happened?" she asked, panting. "Whose dream was that?"

"Is the baby okay?" Finn asked. He leaned over to see the baby's blissfully sleeping face. "He's okay?" he asked Poe, as if afraid he really wasn't, in spite of all appearances.

"Yeah, yeah, he's okay," Poe said. "Are _you_ okay?" He looked between them warily, eyes wide. "Was that...a regular nightmare, you know, for us, or..."

Rey crushed her palms to her eyes. "I don't know. I don't know. There was a—woman. And a man. And a _baby_..." she looked down at the child in Poe’s arms.

Poe glanced down. "I—I mean, that's normal, right? We have a new baby, you have a nightmare about keeping him safe."

"This baby had two hands. And— _they_ took him," Rey said.

That took Poe a minute. His gaze shot to Finn, eyebrows almost to his hairline. " _Oh_."

Finn looked from Rey to Poe, consciously refusing to believe what all three of them knew. "That wasn't _me_. It was a bad dream." He was fully prepared to be stubborn about this. "Why would it be me? Dreams aren't exactly reliable," he added. Even if the baby _had_ looked just like theirs, but with two hands and smiling and not quite so thin (so, just like _him_ ). But it couldn't be, because then those would have been his parents and that would have been his house and his life too long ago to remember. Rey was wrong.

"It—it didn't _feel_ like a dream, Finn. I was there. The—the man and the woman—they looked like _you_." Rey touched his arm, and then drew her arm back, pressing her lips together. "When I touched Luke's lightsaber on Takodana, it—showed me things. I was able to see its past, and my future, through the Force. Through that... _artifact_."

"Are you saying _Finn's_ an artifact? Or that this kid is?" Poe said defensively.

"No, no. I just..." Rey looked lost.

"But we've done that before... Why would you all of a sudden be seeing weird Force visions from touching me?" Finn asked. Rey gave the baby a long look as he slept blissfully unaware.

"I don't know exactly why, Finn." She touched his arm again, let it rest there. "Luke said that the Force had something to tell me, that I should be open—I'm sorry."

"That _can't_ be me," he told her, and looked between her and Poe, begging them to give him what he wanted and say he hadn't just witnessed his own kidnapping via Force vision. That he hadn’t witnessed his own parents’ deaths...

No one said anything for a few moments.

"They called you Sam," Rey said quietly.

" _Sam_?" Poe said, like he had expected his birth name to have been Finn all along.

"I don't want that name,” Finn said. “I want to be Finn. I _am_ Finn. Sam died with the only two people who knew him," Finn said, which was probably unfair and a little heartlessly put. "I don't—even remember them," he said, blinking rapidly to keep back tears. They'd loved him dearly, obviously, had sung to him and rocked him and held him safe, and he couldn't remember a thing about them, not names or faces or voices. He hadn't recognized the language they'd been speaking at all, so he couldn't even guess where they'd lived, once.

"The man was very beautiful and the woman looked very strong," Rey said. She licked her lips. "They were singing before the TIE fighters—"

"Okay, yeah, I don't need to hear that part," Poe said, stopping her. A silence hung between them. "So...Sam?" Poe pulled back to consider Finn with a faint smile. "I was...close?"

"Poe, they don't have a single letter in common...you were _so far_ from close," Finn said, and laughed. "I don't _want_  to be Sam. I like my name." He reached up gently and brushed a finger over the baby's cheek with a soft sigh. "I don't remember them," he said, feeling guilty. They'd loved him, they'd tried to protect him, and he hadn't even recognized them. He'd been far too young, of course, but it didn't make him feel any better. He'd probably never know their names, or even what planet they'd come from.

Rey's eyes were brimming, wanting to shed the tears from the thoughts written across Finn's face.

Poe leaned over to kiss the tear-tracks on Finn's cheeks, where Finn's youth still bore some baby-fat and he looked the most like the baby in Poe's arms. "It's okay, Finno. It's—I’d be kind of insulted if you didn't want to be Finn anymore," he tried to joke. "Anyway, we may have enough to go on—maybe look up who your parents were, see if you have family anywhere else?" It was a long shot, still, but shorter than it had been when they had nothing to go on but Finn himself. Poe licked his lips, looking between Rey and Finn before glancing down at the baby. "But, I mean—so—you didn't get a chance to be Sam. But maybe he could?" Poe glanced down, but he wasn't going to be the first to call the child that.

Finn watched the baby sleep pensively before he eventually replied—Rey was silent, which probably meant she was leaving it to him. He brushed a few more fallen tears off his cheeks with the back of his hand. Then he touched the baby's fuzzy soft hair and smiled a little sadly. "What do you think, little one? Sam an okay name?" he asked the baby.

The baby cooed and opened and closed his tiny fist, but slept on, otherwise unconcerned. "Pretty sure that's all we're gonna get," Poe said with a smile. "Bet he loves it. Right, Sam?" he tried it out. "Sammo. Sammy." Poe smiled. "It's better than Han."

"Better than Kenobi. Ken isn't bad?" Rey said, and then laughed, for the first time in what felt like years.

"We can save that for the next one," Poe suggested.

Rey blinked, thinking for the first time about _more_ children, and nodded as the idea warmed her, oddly enough. "Maybe."

"Sam it is, then. Sammy. It suits him," Finn said. He petted the baby's head again, causing him to grumble. "He's perfect," he sighed, and then looked up at Poe. "Any chance your arms are getting tired?" he asked, giving him a powerful dose of puppy dog eyes.

Poe laughed. "Please, have mercy. I'm going to have to deal with this kid's puppy-eyes, too, you know," he said, and handed the baby over, laying him belly-first against Finn's chest. The child didn't stir, now beyond caring. "Sam," he hummed, rubbing his back before covering him with a blanket. He turned to Rey and opened his arms. "Wanna snuggle with me, Rey? I promise _I'm_ not charged with any Force-visions. Well, who knows. The Force may have different plans."

Rey huffed and crawled into his lap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we took the[ production notes of Finn's character](http://io9.gizmodo.com/13-story-ideas-that-were-dropped-from-star-wars-the-fo-1749962882) [being originally named Sam](http://www.slashfilm.com/force-awakens-changes/) and decided that was Finn's birth name. I'm not sure if that's been done yet in any fic I've ever read...


	14. Chapter 14

Jessika returned right on time, because they were all of them at least half-dozing (Rey and Finn) if not snoring outright (Poe and Sam). Jess had brought Sevens to join her in babysitting duty, and the ex-stormtrooper looked thoroughly uncomfortable by this scenario.

"Hey, no holding the baby while you're asleep. I'm sure that's a rule," Jess said, squeezing Finn's shoulder.

"A rule you just made up," Rey hummed.

"Possibly! But seriously, let me watch the little guy for just a few hours while you get some _real_ rest. We'll stay right here, I promise."

"We named him," Finn said, pausing before very carefully transferring Sam to Jess to hold. "He's Sam."

"You're moving up in the world, little Sam! First a name, next thing you know you'll have actual clothes instead of just a diaper!" Jess told Sam, holding him against her shoulder and grinning when he sighed a tiny baby sigh. "He's out like a light!"

[Friend-Tiny-Finn is Sam!] BB-8 hooted, having apparently heard this from the hall.

"Yeah—hey, bud, I wondered where you'd disappeared to..." Finn answered. Rey was already back to dozing on his shoulder, her eyes half-closed and sleepy.

[I mostly repaired the _Falcon_. No major damages, just from the—] they stopped, apparently loath to mention the explosion.

"Yeah. Thanks, Bee. You want to help Jess and Sevens babysit?" Finn asked, and the droid wobbled happily before rolling over to Jess's feet.

Rey smiled, watching Jessika hold the baby. She wondered if _she_ looked like that—maternal and comfortable and happy—when she held the baby—Sam. When she held Sam. She didn’t feel like that. She mostly felt nervous, but determined, when she was holding him. Gods, she really did need some rest.

Poe was still asleep, but now that there was no baby to worry about squishing, Rey sprawled so that she lay draped over both Poe and Finn. "You'll wake us if there's any trouble?"

"Of course," Jessika said. "We'll sit out in the waiting room, here—Sevens, can you wheel those—yeah, that entire cart—behind me? Thanks. Let you guys sleep. Come on, Sammy, let's go..."

Outside, MT-7 met them with a bottle of formula. "Thanks, MT. Hey, Sevens, watch this, look how cute," she said, nudging the baby awake to see if he was interested in his bottle.

Finn watched them go, a confused and uneasy ex-stormtrooper and a very enthusiastic pilot, and then snuggled Rey closer to him. Poe was still snoring, and he poked him until he moved enough to stop before resting his head on his shoulder and going to sleep.

\---

Sevens wasn't sure how they'd been convinced to go with Jessika to see some survivor of some weird clone facility that the First Order had blown up with Finn, Rey, and Commander Dameron almost still on it.

But they had, which was why they were pushing a strange little cradle while Jess held the baby and got settled with him in her arms. She was talking to him, which made Sevens' heart do strange things that were probably at least partially out of terror that they would be expected to do something similar. They were pretty sure if they held the tiny, fragile thing, he would break.

"Isn't he just precious? Lookit him," Jess said, grinning briefly up at Sevens before focusing on the child. "Guess he doesn't want to eat now, though. We'll try again later. Doesn't he look just like Finn? Got his cute lil’ nose and cheeks." Jess was aware she was doing the baby-voice. She didn't give a particular damn.

"He's very—" Sevens wasn't sure what they were supposed to say. "Small?" Perhaps that was true of all babies. This one seemed especially small, though, from what Sevens had expected. "He does look like the Major." And asleep, tiny mouth slightly open and eyes closed, he was almost cute.

Jessika's face as she looked down at him and smiled and cooed was maybe cuter. It was an enamored look that Sevens hadn't seen on her face before, much different from the wicked grins and the dry smiles or that flat stare she gave Deeks when he was being particularly annoying. Sevens had been trying to learn facial expressions from her by watching—they told themself this was why they were staring.

"You can hold him, too, if you want," Jessika said. "I mean, I'll need to go pee at some point." She grinned up at Sevens again, but could tell that her friend looked—uncomfortable. "Or, you don't have to be here. The whole time, I mean. Is everything...are you okay?"

Sevens looked at their hands, short fingernails that they'd scrubbed clean so as not to get the baby sick, but stained from weapon grease and who knew what else. They could aim a weapon and fire with incredible accuracy, could close like a steel trap and hold fast to the smallest of hand holds on the obstacle course. They were long-fingered, scarred, rough hands. Among the things they were not good at was being gentle. And babies required gentle. It had never occurred to them that this would be a problem until they saw how Jess looked at the baby. "I don't really understand children. I'm not—I don't think I have the fine motor skills for them. I'm good at fighting and protecting, not caring for small, fragile things," they answered. Jess should know this, because if she _did_ want a child, Sevens feared they wouldn't be much help.

"That's okay," Jess said brightly. "Sit down. I promise they're easy. You know human babies actually bounce?" She grinned. "Come on, sit down. Like parents say that as a joke, but it's actually kinda true. Their bodies can handle way more than we think they can. I mean, you don't want to bounce your baby to try," she laughed, "but I think people often think babies are more fragile than they are. They just need good care and love and not to be dropped on their heads too hard," Jessika said, smiling so much that Sevens couldn't tell if she was teasing. "This little guy is different of course, aren't you, Sam? He needs extra care and medicines and machines but he's still a normal baby deep down, aren't you?" she cooed, kissing against his neck until he actually woke up, and gave a half-hearted sob. "Want to try some milk, kiddo?" Jess said, trying the milk again. He suckled a little, but quickly gave up again. "Well. We can try again. You want to hold him?"

"What if it upsets him? He seems happy with you," Sevens said. They weren't sure whether they did or did not want to hold Sam, and stalled accordingly. "What if I just talk to him? While you hold him?" If the baby could deal with that, maybe Sevens would hold him. "I don't know what you say to babies," they admitted. "Um. Hi, Sam," they said cautiously. "You'll like it here. They're nice, and there's always food, and you can sleep until you wake up some days." How did one carry on a conversation with a creature that couldn't look at you, much less answer? Sam was barely even old enough to really earnestly open his eyes.

"That's fine," Jessika said, and beamed, as Sevens initiated conversation with the little fellow. "That's great." It was even a little sad, but mostly heartwarming, to hear the things Sevens touted about the Resistance—about life outside the First Order. "Those are really your favorite things about...life here?" she asked, almost shyly, sitting back, her heart...aching. There was not a thing that Jessika thought she wouldn't give to or do for Sevens if they asked.

"I like this, too," Sevens said, gesturing to the area around them. "You fix broken people, even if they're really broken. I heard Finn was out for—weeks, after his battle with Lord Ren? Or was Coni exaggerating?" they asked. "I also like my bed here. We slept on metal shelves." When Jess gave them a completely horrified look, Sevens barked a laugh. "Kidding. We had beds, but not like the ones here."

Jess laughed, and though jostled, Sam cooed, opening and closing his tiny fist. "Yeah, we—yeah. I think we form attachments to _people_ , you know." She swallowed thickly. "You want to try letting him hold your finger?"

Sevens grinned at this and touched Sam's hand, smiling even bigger when he closed his tiny fingers and held on. "I didn't really know that being attached to people would be such a nice thing. I didn't think it would be bad, it's just... I'd never really thought about it at all." It certainly made their feelings towards Jess novel and confusing, even if Finn had given them books and all the help he could. "Oh! And people look different here. Not that they didn't in the First Order, but since we mostly always wore some kind of uniform... But no one really does that here. Even when you're in uniform it's different, because your uniforms aren't all exactly the same."

Jessika smiled. And some of us look better than others, right? she wanted to say, wanted to tease, but gods, that was _too_ obvious, and she had to stop thinking like that. "Yeah, we—I mean, I guess the Republic's a little more strict about military decorum, but we're pretty lax here. I should...you should see Coruscant, someday. People of all shapes and sizes, genders, and species, too. It's—really neat. I mean, it's _Coruscant_ , so I'd be lying if I said they weren't all really shitty to each other, but," Jessika laughed and shook her head.

Sevens waved the baby's hand around a little, actually laughing when he didn't let go and only burbled a little. "Can we go there? Sometime when there’s not a war on, I mean. I'd like to see Coruscant," Sevens asked, somewhat unaware that they'd just suggested that they and Jess should go together. "You have multiple species and genders here too, though, and different shapes and sizes," they pointed out. Probably it was much more extreme on Coruscant, given that they weren't presumably trying to hide from the First Order.

Jessika nodded, trying to contain her excitement at seeing Sevens react positively to the baby. "We do," she said. "But I guess there's some benefits to wearing a mask all the time. Like you probably didn't have an issue with people misgendering you. I _do_ want to apologize for Ziff, today. We love him, but he's from a backward planet."

Sevens shrugged one shoulder. "That's true, mostly. They didn't treat men and women differently, so in some ways it didn't matter so much. The only thing that was forbidden was loving anyone or anything more than the First Order. Technically sex, too, I guess, but I guess you’ve heard how that went." Sevens sat back against the chair and pulled their legs up to sit cross-legged. After a thoughtful pause, they continued. "On the other hand, gender was strictly binary. Even those who weren't born as an easily identifiable sex were assigned the gender that made the most sense." They looked over at Jess and grinned wryly. "I was put in the female group, which meant I slept in a bunk room with three to five other people who were also superficially female by their standards." But those closest to them had never used feminine pronouns to describe them, which they had appreciated—even if the higher-ups did. "So it was sort of constant misgendering, but I would have been more bothered if they didn't treat all stormtroopers the same." Here, where some people seemed to have ideas about how the genders should be or not be, it was...already growing tedious, really. But Sevens was patient. And there were others like them, even among the humans (and more among the non-humans, of course), so they weren't alone, which was a relief.

Jessika nodded, trying to conceptualize a world where _gender_ didn't matter except personally, and sex was the only thing that was noted. “Sounds great to me,” Jessika said—and then laughed, embarrassed. “I mean! Like, being ‘stuck’ rooming with a bunch of girls. And with you.”

She paused.

_Gods, why did you say that? Nerfherder! Why is Sevens looking at me like that?! Quick, say something! Do something!_

"Some of them were very pretty—some of the men too. There were some that were a lot like me, not one or the other—though whether they just looked that way or wanted to be that way... Anyway, a couple of them were pretty attractive too." Sevens remembered a trooper from two bunks down—one of the TNs—the woman had been tinier even than Jess, and mean as Hux on a bad day. But she'd had this beautiful smile that was utterly at odds with her personality, and it wasn't even rare, they few times they saw her out of her helmet. Sevens had been fascinated. That one, they'd thought, could have taken advantage and it wouldn't have been much of an inconvenience.

But Jess had soft edges with her sharp corners, and an sharpness to her smile that spoke to all of Sevens' sharp edges. "So, I talked to Finn the other day. About you. And me. Mostly you," Sevens told Jess, because patience had never been a strength they possessed, and they were tired of dancing around it. Life was too short for coy mind games and that bantha shit.

Jessika was so entrenched in panic mode that she didn't hear most of what Sevens said, though she did gather that the conversation had gone from what kinds of people Sevens had thought attractive to, suddenly, _her_. "You talked to Finn about me?" She whimpered. _Shit_. She had talked to Finn, too. Had Finn blabbed? Was he going to report her? "I—Sevens," she said a little helplessly. "I'd have to be...I couldn't...um..."

Sevens held out a hand placatingly—they hadn't meant to upset Jess. "I understand all of that conflict of interest stuff, mostly, now. But eventually I won't be in the reintegration program, and I’m certainly not going to be piloting anything, ever, so there won't be any CO-subordinate problems, right?" they asked. "And I trust you not to take advantage of the situation anyway. I don't want to make you uncomfortable." They looked over at Jess to see if she was still panicking.

Jessika's mouth hung open. "I...you _trust_ me?" she gaped, wondering if someone with a normalized view of rape trusting her was the sweetest thing she had ever heard or somehow the most repulsive. "You're not making me uncomfortable, I..." Jessika looked down, focused on the baby, to have something else to focus on. It was true, that Sevens wouldn't be under her jurisdiction forever. They could wait and do this by the books....

"Um, but," Jess coughed. "Okay. I don't want to contribute to people misgendering you, right? Like, everyone and their mom knows I only like girls. Or...I used to. I'm not sure any more. But, anyway, if I'm a lesbian, what does that make you? People will ask, and you don't have to go through that..."

Sevens barked a short laugh. "People _already_ ask... And if people really feel the need to put me in that box, I can...think of worse things, in the long run." They shrugged, wondering if they would later regret that statement. They'd grown to enjoy not constantly being expected to be one or the other. "But the same could be said for you. Is it going to cause you an identity crisis, being with someone who isn't one gender or the other?" It wasn't that they'd like being misgendered, or even that it wouldn't bother them, but...well, sacrifices had to be made, right? At least in this one Sevens had a choice. Jess would kind of be sacrificing part of her identity, too, wouldn’t she? And if it was for Jess, even though they were frustrated that this was even an issue that people would have, Sevens would try to deal with it, and then if it didn't work, they would know they had tried.

"I mean, I'd punch anyone who said that I couldn't be a lesbian and you couldn't be nonbinary at the same time, if we were to date," Jess offered. "And I'd be the one to get in less trouble for that, for the record, so please leave the punching to me." She grinned, and reached out to take Sevens' hand, but this still had to remain in the realm of hypothetical. "Is it okay if I were to fall for you...because you had some feminine traits? Like! I mean, like say if your hair were really nice, or if you were kind and nurturing to the other stormtroopers, or had a great sense of humor and a personal strength that made me feel faint? And. If you didn't hate the idea of babies? And if you weren't an Entitled Man about anything." Jessika paused. "I feel like I could fall for anyone who was like that. Even, I guess, if they had a penis." But she wrinkled up her nose slightly at that.

Sevens raised their eyebrows and chuckled at that. "Okay, first of all: how are those things feminine, because Major Finn and Commander Dameron both do those things too, and second: what is being an "Entitled Man" because I would like to avoid being either half of that." They laughed and added, "And luckily for you, I don't have a penis for you to make that particularly charming face at. Just, you know, to put that on the table."

Jessika actually snorted at that, and maybe she was a shitty person for being secretly relieved, but it did make her feel better. “Ew. Why are we talking about penises on tables?” she said, and laughed.

Sevens grinned, and looked down to where their hand was now clasped in Jess', and then over at Sam, who was sleeping. "And I don't have anything against babies. They just...worry me. He's the first baby I've ever really seen this close," they said. He was kind of adorable.

Jessika smiled. Maybe the whole fraternization thing wasn’t so insurmountable now. "You guys are past your probation period any day now, right?" she mused, and Sevens nodded. “I don't suppose any stormtrooper of any gender could ever be an 'entitled man' about anything. Poe's like that, sometimes, and Snap often. But Finn never is. Remind me to talk to you about the patriarchy sometime when I'm not hormonal because I'm holding a baby." Jess giggled. "And don't worry, I'll only want, like, twelve."

"Babies?!" Sevens yelped.

"We could adopt?" Jessika teased. "I don't actually want twelve kids." She bit her lip, thinking. "Um. So. Then there’s not really anything stopping us, right? I mean, we can see where this...goes...after. Once you’re—”

“Yeah.”

Jess laughed, a little giddily, wondering why she had been so worried. “I mean, you've got lips, right?"

Sevens was still getting over the minor heart attack they'd been having at the thought of twelve children, but they were also listening, and this non-sequitur confused them. "Yes? I mean...yeah? Is this a trick question?" they asked, letting go of Jess's hand to touch their mouth. "Your face has them too," they joked, and maybe it was an invasion of space, but they put their hand softly on Jess's chin and touched her lips with a thumb. Then they grinned, a sort of nervous 'I may be about to regret my choices please don't bite me' smile.

"Yeah, I—I _do_ ," Jessika said, blushing fiercely. She adjusted the baby slightly in her arms, well aware now that she had no hands to reach out and touch or pull or encourage. "We...could start with lips?" Her question was barely more than a whisper, but Sevens' eyes were so _green_ she almost couldn't think!

Jess was cute when she blushed—like, _really_ cute—and Sevens was going to have their second heart failure in as many minutes if she didn't stop immediately. "Okay, for the record, this is me giving enthusiastic consent to that suggestion," they said, and moved their thumb out of the way and leaned in so they could kiss Jess, maybe a little clumsily, but if anyone asked, Sevens was not above blaming it on a combination of Jess blushing and that small smile and her really wonderful mouth and how frustratingly perfect and natural she was at holding Sam and talking and joking and flirting all at the same time. Anyone would have been clumsy in the face of that, and it wasn't like Sevens had extensive experience in this kind of kissing.

Jessika Pava would have been lying if she said her breath didn't catch, or that her heart didn't twitter like an excited schoolgirl at that brush of lips. And—yeah, in that moment, it really only mattered that Jess liked _Sevens_ , not anything else—not the things that she thought mattered to her about who she wanted in a partner—and she was still prepared to fight anyone who said she couldn't still call herself a lesbian or Sevens couldn't use gender neutral pronouns. Fuck them. She was in love with this ex-stormtrooper with the green eyes and incredible biceps. She was going to protect and love them and she wouldn't mind if Sevens wanted to protect and love her, too.

But right now. Kissing.

Which was the baby's cue to start crying, of course, but maybe this time he would drink his milk, and, still smiling, though interrupted, Jess turned back to the tiny bundle in her arms, nudging the bottle to his lips. "That's it, Sammy. You get real good at cock-blocking. Every time you interrupt kissing and make your Papa’s life harder, Auntie Jess will bring you a cookie," she promised, wondering how she could love Poe and Finn and Rey so much and also want them to suffer so much. Maybe she was jealous of their really fucking cute kid.

She blinked up at Sevens again. "So, I like your lips," she said, trying her best to pull off demure.

Sevens gave Jess a small smile, because they liked her lips, too, and wanted to kiss her again—but they would wait, because right now the baby was awake and clearly expecting attention, or at least food. He was really being quite fussy, and Sevens eyed him when he continued whimpering after he'd pushed the bottle away from his face. "Why is he angry?" they asked Jess.

"Sometimes babies are just dramatic," Jessika said, and shifted Sam so he lay pressed against her chest. But he still made fussy sounds. "Okay, how about a change of scenery. You wanna go see Sevens?" She lowered her voice conspiratorially: "You can cop a feel in my honor since I'm not allowed to," she whispered, holding the baby towards Sevens.

"He's just going to get more upset!" Sevens yelped, but Jess was already holding Sam toward them, so in their confusion, they found themselves holding a very small, very discontent baby. "Oh no, little one, why are you unhappy? You've just eaten! Oh, you're really very upset..." they said, and now he was squirming too, working himself into a proper tantrum. "Ssssh, baby, it's okay." Still he was screaming, and Sevens tucked him close to their chest, one arm under his bottom and a hand splayed over his back.

"Okay, the good news is he's getting enough air to scream that loud," Jess giggled, rubbing his head. "Maybe try moving around a bit? Cords permitting, of course. Sometimes they like it when you bounce or sway."

And sure enough, Sevens beginning to move soothed the baby, and Sam began to quiet to small sobs, and with a wiggle he settled.

"There, you see. You're great with kids. He likes you," Jess said. "And I _really_ don't want twelve, I was joking. My mother and grandmother, on the other hand…"

Sevens just kept moving, even going so far as to smile down at the tiny baby that had finally found a comfortable position and was curled toward their chest. They looked sheepishly up at Jess. "He's nice to hold. It's almost comforting? Just that he's warm and a little heavy and—" and he was so sweet and tiny and fragile. They were still afraid they'd hurt him on accident, but as long as he was still and calm and not squirming, they were unlikely to accidentally hold them too tight or not tight enough or _wrong_ , they hoped.

"He's a-freaking-dorable," Jess said, giggling as she watched Sevens dance around. "Just like you, who doesn't like babies." She grinned smugly, and settled back in her chair. "I mean, if nothing else, it's working like a charm on me, so carry on." Jessika winked.

Sevens looked at Sam, considering what Jess had just said. Sam opened and closed his fingers in his sleep and Sevens smiled. "Pssst, hey buddy, you keep being cute and I'll keep moving around as much as you want. Jess says it's working for her," they told the baby, turning half away from Jess and whispering like it was a secret. "He says I'm not so bad even if I am a little scared of him and don't have the first idea what I'm doing," they added, turning back around and saying it with a completely straight face.

"Not bad at all," Jessika agreed. "Nice moves. Great lips." She raised her eyebrows playfully, and watching Sevens _blush_ and laugh was the best thing Jessika Pava had seen all week.

…

Sam was getting stronger daily, which was good, because his weak immune system inevitably caught a cold. Dr. Kalonia caught it early, because they were already being helicopter parents—the General didn't dare put them on active duty yet—but still the baby had a bronchial infection and a fever by then. He struggled to breathe sometimes, and screamed the rest of the time.

It was beginning to wear on their nerves.

"Finn, it's okay, I've _got_ him. You rest," Poe was saying sternly, even though you could have packed for a week-long vacation with the bags under his eyes.

"But I want to help," Finn said, although he was at wits end. Rey was watching them, eyes glassy, from where she curled in a chair. She'd been holding Sam, but when nothing she did could help him, she'd let Finn take over gladly. Poe was the only one who hadn't tried to placate the infant this time around, and there was really nothing Finn could do, but he kept trying. "Finn, let Poe try. You're tired, I'm tired, he's...less tired?" she sighed. Sam was still screeching, giving full vent to his tiny fury at feeling so awful. While Rey could sympathize, she also really wished he would not.

"If you both go sleep now, then you can both come back and be with the kid while I take a turn," Poe said, shifting Sam in his arms and worrying that his crying had stopped because he was gasping. "Hey baby, you're okay," he soothed, adjusting the cannula, which was all snotty. "Can you cough for me, little one?" he asked, gently patting his back.

"What if _you_ fall asleep?" Rey asked, not liking this plan much. Okay, yes, she wanted to sleep in their own bed, away from medical, and she felt dutifully awful about wanting to leave Sam, but he _wouldn't stop crying_.

"What if only one of us sleeps at a time? You could go first, then either Poe or me. And then whoever is here will have company, and whoever is sleeping will have peace and quiet," Finn suggested, because Rey sounded like _she_ might start crying if she didn't get sleep soon. She yawned but didn't look completely sold on actually moving. "Hey sweetheart, I think you'll actually have to stand and walk to get back to our room," Finn said with a gentle smile.

"I'm using the Force," Rey mumbled.

"That's not how the Force works...come on, up, go get some sleep." He pulled Rey to her feet and pointed her toward their quarters. When she had gone, he went to put an arm around Poe's shoulders as Sam gave a weak cough and started crying again—not screaming this time, but heartbreaking little sobs of unhappiness that made Finn want to cry too. "Baby, so much tiny misery, I know. You're okay, my guy," he crooned as Poe continued rocking Sam.

"He says, 'Hey, you try having a bronchial infection when your lungs are this tiny, pal!'" Poe provided, patting Sam gently and arranging the blankets to let him let off some steam. He was _so_ warm. But babies were warm, and he was sick, and Poe was not going to be _that_ parent, running to Dr. Kalonia at every slight issue (he'd only bothered her seven times today). "You're okay, bud, my guy, let's clean this off," he tried, moving the cannula away so Finn could grab it, wipe it of snot, sanitize it and replace it. This only made Sam cry more. He probably hated the thing. "I know, buddy, I hate those things, too," Poe sighed, kissing his brow.

Since Sam was still wailing and hot, Finn went into the bathroom and got a cool wet washcloth, bringing it back out and rubbing it gently over Sam's skin. Either it helped a little or he was growing exhausted again, because the sobs quieted to whimpers and then sniffles, and he finally rested his head on Poe's shoulder and consented to a brief back rub before he grew restless again. Finn could tell he was conflicted between screaming some more and sleeping, and devoutly hoped he might choose the latter.

"Shh, shh, you're okay, bud," Poe said, trying to feed him again, but Sam fussed and pushed it away, so Poe shifted him into Finn's hold. "Here we are, your favorite clone daddy in the whole world, there. Hm?" he said, and hummed again, and in a break between sobs he began humming a tune. This seemed either to amuse or confuse Sam, who whined and shifted but didn't sob. "He's very strong, for being as young as he is. You want a song, buddy boy? My baby bud?" Poe asked, now taking over with the washcloth, and singing:

"Oh I'm a lucky man  
To count on both hands  
The ones I love  
Some folks just have one  
Yeah others they got none, uh huh  
Stay with me  
Let's just breathe."

Poe sighed as Sam seemed to quiet, less because he was no longer in pain and more that he was perhaps getting some comfort from this. "I should bring my quetarra."

Finn relaxed a little once Sam calmed enough to only whimper and burrow against his chest, seeming to listen as solemnly as he could to Poe's singing. "He'll love it. I think he likes music," Finn answered, because this was not the first time Sammy had calmed when someone sang to him. "You like Papa's voice, huh, little one? I do, too," Finn said to Sam. His eyes kept drifting shut, which was adorable, and also a relief. If they were tired, Finn couldn't imagine how tired Sam must be. "Yeah, you're good. Little Sammy, my sweet little guy," he hummed, and kissed the top of his head.

"I still think that's weird," Snap said, entering and putting a bag of adult human food on the bed. "Kid's gonna get confused with two dads."

"Oh, yeah, because we look so much alike," Poe said darkly, glaring at his friend. But he accepted the food.

"He should call you Finn and Poe."

"Ugh, you're so weird, Snap," Poe said. "Only weirdos call their parents by their first names. I'm Papa and Papi, Finn is Dad and Daddy. Easy."

"You call your dad 'Kes' all the time!" Snap cried, though he tried to keep his voice down as Sam snuffled and shifted.

"Only when I'm mad at him," Poe retorted. "And if you don't want me mad at you, too, you'll go fetch me my quetarra. Try not to get murdered by Rey, who's sleeping in there."

Snap rolled his eyes, but Sam had sobbed again.

"Oh, hey fella, hey, want some more singing? You're alright, you're alright, shhhhh," Finn said, rocking Sam gently so as not to knock out the cannula.

"Somewhere over the rainbow,  
way up high  
There's a land that I heard of once  
in a lullaby..."

Finn’s voice was clearly less accustomed to singing than Poe's, but almost as effective. Sam whimpered and squirmed and fussed as though he wanted to be put down, but as soon as Finn tried, he screamed, having changed his mind. Finn hastily continued:

"Somewhere over the rainbow,  
skies are blue.  
And the dreams that you dare to dream  
really do come true.”

Sam stopped screaming enough to listen. Poe almost laughed (he was slap-happy tired) as Sam screamed at the prospect of being set down. He laid a hand over Sam's back and joined in the singing. "You gonna join in, Snap?" Poe demanded of his friend, but Wexley beat a hasty retreat.

And Poe was fine, really he was, he was just resting his head on Finn's shoulder because he had such a nice voice, and really just resting his eyes for a minute, but the kid had stopped crying so by the time Snap came back with the quetarra he was out like a light.

"Well, you've got one out. Wrong one, but..." Snap said very quietly as he set the quetarra down against the chair. Finn smiled, although Sam, by no means asleep, was still squirming unhappily in his arms.

"Rey asleep?" Finn asked, and Snap sat down next to him.

"Man, she is dead to the world. When that woman puts her mind to it, she sleeps hard," he answered. Sam was flailing his way in Snap's general direction, and Finn switched shoulders so the baby could reach for Snap and give them some brief peace. "Wanna come see Uncle Snap?" the man asked, and took Sam from Finn.

When Sam took a deep breath to start yelling, Snap blew gently on his face. "You know what's better than screaming? Not screaming! And funny faces." He started pulling various hilarious faces while Sam, in stunned silence, watched. He looked thoroughly unhappy, but that had been his look all day, for two days.

"Hey, kiddo, your Uncle Snap will look after you, huh? Bet that cools you down, yeah? Feels good on your face?" Snap blew across his forehead again.

In response, Sam sneezed, sending an impressive amount of snot for a less than one-week-old baby across Snap's face.

"'Scuse me while I go decontaminate my entire face," Snap said, handing Sam back and going to wash the sneeze off. On the bright side, this seemed to have exhausted Sam's supply of snot for the time being. His breathing was much better, and though he still gasped slightly, at least his nose wasn't still completely blocked.

…

To Finn's not very great surprise, Rey returned in five hours instead of eight. She didn't exactly look well-rested, but she looked more awake than Finn felt. "How's our baby?" she asked, coming over to give Finn a kiss. Sam was quiet for the moment, but only because he'd just stopped sobbing and trying to rub the cannula off his face.

"He liked singing but I'm too tired now," Finn admitted. He was happy to let Rey take Sam when she reached to pick him up, but the baby immediately started whimpering.

"Oh hi, little love, you doing okay?" She still couldn't always figure out how to hold him, and she could tell she was upsetting him the way she was holding him now because he was squirming for all he was worth. "Baby, what are you doing? Let's sit down, huh?" she asked, and went to go sit on the bed.

"You came back early," Finn said to her. He didn't move, not wanting to disturb Poe.

"Weird dreams. Not nightmares, really..."

"But probably going that way?" Rey nodded, shifting Sam to a more comfortable position.

Poe snuffled awake. "Shit. I fell asleep. Rey! You're supposed to be sleeping," he said, and then looked at the chronometer. "Oh. You did sleep. _I_ slept that long?" He scrubbed a hand over his face. "You're...very comfy," he told Finn, kissing his cheek as he stood up, cracking his neck. Poe went to Rey and kissed her hair. It needed a wash, but so did his, so he wasn't going to complain. "Sleep okay?"

"I kept having pregnant dreams, and everyone was trying to take my babies," Rey said. "Weird. So I got up."

Poe huffed and stretched. "Okay, so, Finn? You want to try to catch some sleep? We got the little guy, and I'm good for a while after my nap." He gently adjusted Rey's hold until Sam seemed more comfortable: a good position was laying him out on her knees, so he could sprawl and be relatively cool while still being held. "Gosh, his fever hasn't gone down at all," he mused. It might have gotten worse.

Finn got up and stretched, cracking his back and yawning. "Yeah, I'm going. Come get me if anything changes," he said, and shuffled off to sleep, finally, in their bed and not medical, with familiar sheets and pillows... He was asleep by the time his head was down.

...

"He's really warm, Poe. He wasn't nearly this warm earlier," Rey said with some concern. She scrubbed a hand over his head and lay the back of her hand against his forehead. "Maybe he's just tired—but he won't sleep, either, unless that's changed in the past five hours," she said.

"I'm guessing he didn't get much rest while I was napping, but who knows," Poe said, stroking the tiny bundle laying between them. "Love ya, little guy. Our poor little Sammy." He chewed his lip for a minute before, "Gods, he's _really_ warm." He swallowed. "I'm gonna get Dr. K."

As it was, all he could find was a droid (Dr. Kalonia was in a meeting with Timons—they had lots of meetings, actually, which, okay, was good, Timons needed the attention), but MT-7 agreed that Sam's temperature was nearing a dangerous degree, and adjusted medications accordingly. But then he had to be moved into the climate-controlled crib, and all they could do was reach in and touch him.

Sam did _not_ like that, and he sobbed, but much weaker than before, and when it trailed off Poe and Rey almost wished for Sam's wails to come back because it meant he had the strength to cry. Singing was the only thing that helped, and Poe plucked at his quetarra long after their voices had given out, while Rey let Sam grip her finger.

"Poe, he doesn't—feel right," Rey said, suddenly, like she had been holding onto this for a while and just managed to blurt it out. "I don't know how babies are supposed to feel but he doesn't—I can't feel a _mind_ there. I can't tell if he knows us even knows what he is.”

“Rey, he’s sick, give the poor kid a break!”

“No, it’s not that. I mean, what if the tank he was grown in messed him up? What if he didn't get enough nutrients to his brain, or something—and his head is like his arm?" She couldn't say this to Finn, Finn would worry too much, but she had read some things... "He's supposed to make eye contact, but he's not done that yet, either."

"Hey, hey, easy," Poe said firmly, stopping his plucking, but a soft whine from Sam had him starting up. "I mean, he gets music. He can't be that bad off if he likes music, right?" he tried, partially to convince himself. "I mean, he's premature, and he's still developing. So maybe that's normal. We could have MT give him a neuroscan, if you want?"

Rey looked down at their baby, who was still gripping her finger but otherwise still and quiet in an unsettling way. “I just want him to be okay...I didn't know I would love him so much so fast," she admitted. She waved her finger a little to move his hand. "Hear that, Sammy? We love you. No matter what, little one, and we'll take care of you," she told him. Then she looked over at Poe. "Maybe once he's better? In case there's anything we can do to help him. Or we can ask Dr. Kalonia if he's alright. Or Luke. He or Leia would know." She bent to kiss Sam's head, wincing at how warm he still was.

"Yeah," Poe agreed, strumming chords and humming, not really paying attention to what he was playing. "We could ask. She probably already did tests, you know." He sighed. "He may just need time. If he weren't a clone, he wouldn't have even been born yet."

They waited, pressing touches and kisses to Sam and each other, and Sam grew weaker and weaker. Eventually, when Poe stopped playing and couldn't sing anymore, Sam didn't even cry.

…

Finn slept for only a few hours before he was awakened by Sammy's crying. Part of him argued that this was a little odd because there was no way he could hear him from medical. But he got up anyway and grabbed the first clothes he found at his feet and looked around for him. He wasn't in the room, clearly, and Finn left, heading toward medical. The sobbing grew louder and more upset and he started running, but it was taking forever to find medical. How had it moved while he was sleeping?

There was a pause in the sobbing. "Sam? Hey Sammy, I'm coming, it's okay sweetheart," he called, and the crying started again, weak little whimpers that scared Finn. When he reached medical, he shoved the door open to find it deserted and unused. Sam was still crying, but even weaker now. "Sam? Where are you, bud?" But the crying was growing weaker and weaker, and Finn panicked and ran toward the sound, searching frantically.

Then it stopped entirely. It didn't come back. Finn yelled several times in vain, and that was what finally woke him, thrashing, mumbling Sam's name.

He got up and _ran_ to medical in his sleeping pants and shirt.

…

"He's crashing."

Dr. Kalonia and a nurse and two droids had appeared suddenly amongst them, taking their son from their arms, and now Finn had rushed in and Poe was holding him back (and Rey, who had fire in her eyes), and all they could do was hope, and pray, and let the doctors do their work behind a pane of glass now.

The kid had made it this far and he wasn't going to die on them.

"Hang in there, damn it," Poe begged in a whisper, clutching at Rey and Finn, and he couldn't tell if they were shaking or if it was him.

"He'll be okay, he has to be," Finn said. "Sammy, come on, bud, please," he begged. His voice cracked.

"We're losing him."

Everything stopped when Sam flatlined.

Except Rey. Rey shoved through the door and bent over the tiny cradle.

Poe's own heart skipped a beat and his vision faded out, so that he didn't notice when Rey suddenly left his arms and was in the surgery room, laying her hands on Sam like she was going to—

"Sammy, come on, you can't do this. I won't let you do this. You're strong, you can't survive all that and get taken out by a _cold_!" she growled. A med droid tried to remove her but without looking she used the Force to fling it off balance. She reached into the crib and put her hand over Sam's tiny chest. "Come _on_ ," she sobbed, begging his chest to rise under her hand, begging his heart to keep beating, _willing_ it to. She couldn't lose him like the other ones, powerless to stop it. She couldn't bear to feel him stop too, the way they had. She _wouldn't_. "Sam, come on, breathe," she said, and closed her eyes hard. Instead of merely wishing, she threw everything Luke had taught her into it. The Force _did_ work this way. It kriffing did and she wasn't kriffing losing their kid.

Sam gasped under her hand, and she held her breath. Do it again. Do it. Come on...

He breathed again, and another time, and the med droid she'd knocked over announced that it was stopping the emergency oxygen it had been supplying as a last ditch effort to keep the baby's blood oxygenated enough for his body to keep functioning. Rey kept her hand where it was until she was sure the breaths were going to keep coming.

Kalonia was raising her voice at her, which meant she was in trouble. But Rey had never done quite so much in so little time with the Force, and when she stood up to face whatever lecture she was getting, she fell right over.

"Oh gods," Poe said, when Sam's heart started beating again, and he started breathing on his own again, but he had no one to say it to, because Finn had gone after Rey, and caught her as she suddenly fell over.

Poe was pounding in after them.

"Dameron, get them out of here, what about Sterile Area is unclear?!"

Poe nodded and helped Finn drag her out. "He's gonna be okay, he's okay, it's all right, buddies,” he told them. “Sammy's gonna be fine. We can watch him from here..."

Rey was weak, but she was with it enough to hear that he'd be fine.

"I'm gonna be in so much trouble," she informed them in a hollow whisper. "That was  _not_ regulation use of the Force." It was a fairly solid rule—which Luke and Rey agreed on—that using the Force (especially out of fear) to heal, to give life, to _alter_ life, was a slippery slope to the Dark Side. Playing with life and death...was…yeah. How long before _she_ got to decide, like some kind of god, who lived and who died, how long before it became okay to _harm_ as well as heal? She put her head in her hands. “I fucked up.”

Dr. Kalonia had stalked out of the room and was glaring at them with her arms crossed. It probably meant everything was okay with Sam, at least?

"I don't know what you did," Dr. Kalonia hissed, more angry than they had ever seen her before, madder than she pretended to be when Poe was a bad patient, "but for some mysterious reason which science cannot explain, he's stable." She glared at Rey, then at the other two. "After Sam is out of ICU, all three of you are going to sterilize my surgery room, which takes a droid nine hours and they do it right the first time. _Never_ burst into my surgery room again." Once this was out of her system, though, she softened. "You can be with your son in a few hours, once he's breathing better, but we'll need to be serious about keeping him in a sterile environment until he's stronger."

They nodded, and Dr. Kalonia pursed her lips. "It _is_ all right that we call him your son, correct? We can make that official?"

"Yes. Absolutely. He's our son," Finn answered for all of them.

Rey finally caught up with the conversation and, "I'm sorry," she blurted out, "about bursting in. Not about saving Sammy," she clarified. She wouldn't ever be sorry about that, which she supposed was going to be a problem.

"You'll be more sorry when you've sterilized that room to my satisfaction," Kalonia told her, not prepared to be the least not sympathetic about _that_. "And you'll be wearing gowns, gloves, masks, and caps until he is strong enough."

"Of course," Poe stammered, kind of morbidly relieved that when Dr. Kalonia finally _snapped_ it miraculously wasn't at him. "Anything. Thank you. Thank you." He might have kissed her, if he thought he could stand, but he was shaking as much as Rey and Finn were, and trying to console Rey, who was freaking out. "How was that _not_ regulation use of the Force? What are you going to get scolded for?!" he asked, when Dr. Kalonia had gone.

"There are definitely rules about giving or taking life with the Force. Ah, it's kind of a power that's too great for any one person to have. It's the desire that created Darth Vader, after all. But...Sam is ok. I'm not upset about it." She looked at the glass that separated Sam from them. "He's okay, and he's ours. She said it—so it's official." And she loved him, and she loved them, and they were a _family_ , and as long as they were alive she would never turn to the Dark Side...

Poe pulled them together so their foreheads were touching. He thought that was a stupid rule, but then he couldn't imagine _not_ using the Force to bring people back from the dead on a daily freaking basis and that was probably why he didn't have it. "You're okay. He's okay. If Luke gives you grief I'll just be insubordinate—again..." he trailed off, letting them slide to the floor in a pile. "It's okay," he murmured, wrapping his arms around both of them.

Rey clung to him, and buried her face against Finn's neck. "Finn," she finally said. "Where are your shoes?"

Finn looked down at his feet, completely bare, and at his clothes, which were clearly for sleeping in. "Oh. I had a nightmare,” he said, and took a careful breath. “He was crying, but I couldn't find him—and it woke me up and I came here." He wiggled his toes. Probably he could, and should, go change. Instead, he closed his eyes and leaned into Poe and Rey, taking comfort in their closeness and reminding himself that Sammy was just in the other room, his body working away at getting better.

Poe and Rey both winced and squeezed him companionably. "Well," Poe said. "Well, that's two for three, who wants to find out if my nightmares are back, too?" Poe said, forcing a grin dripping with sarcasm. "Not me!"

"Poe, it is your shift to sleep—" Rey said sternly.

"Mostly," Finn added. "It's not like either of us caught a full six, much less eight."

Poe wrinkled up his nose and shook his head. "If I'm sleeping, I'm going to do it here, with you, and Sam, and...this nice floor." (Which, he was tired enough that it was almost inviting.) "Earplugs and sleeping mask. I can sleep anywhere."

"But I'm pretty sure Rey ate one of the earplugs..."

"Did not!"

Poe glanced back into the surgery room, where Sam lay in his crib, watched over by droids. "He's gonna be okay," he told them. "He's our _son_ , and he's gonna be okay." Poe blinked, and all but lurched to his feet, or would have if Rey hadn't stopped him. "I have to tell dad!"

Finn chuckled softly as Rey yanked Poe back to the ground. "Poe, you really need to sleep. We can tell him in a few days. Or at least the morning. Besides, it'll take me that long to get some com time from Connix," Finn said. And, since he wasn't above cheating, he started running his fingers gently through Poe's hair. "What if we move back up to the chairs? There's one over there that's more of a couch than anything," he said, because as comfortable as the floor was now, it was going to make them all sore if they stayed here.

"Hhnnuuooo," Poe said, tossing his head.

"Come on, Poe, we already have one fussy baby to deal with, we don't need an adult one, too," Rey teased, and they led him back to the chair where he could curl up on one side.

"Okay, wake me up if there's any change with Sam," he said, humming as Finn sat at his head and brushed his fingers through his hair.

"Only if you promise you'll get in the refresher when you wake up," Rey teased.

"Promise," Poe said, and was immediately asleep.

Finn tipped his head back to rest against the wall, feeling somewhat deflated now that the adrenaline was wearing off. Rey scrunched down a little next to him so she could comfortably rest her head on his shoulder, and he smiled tiredly at her. "Hey, sunshine," he said, and she snuggled closer.

"Hey. Sorry you had nightmares," she answered quietly. He shrugged one shoulder.

"You're pretty amazing, you know that? Our kid has a very badass mom." Rey giggled and turned bright red.

"Maybe. Do badasses get things wrong all the time?" Rey wondered. She tucked her arms around his arm, squeezing it. "I just—I know it's not about right and wrong, so much as it is about power, and why you’re using it. That's what Luke says. Obi-Wan says it's about right and wrong, but I think he doesn't believe himself, really." She gasped. "Oh, wait, I told you, right? That—sometimes I can talk with Obi-Wan Kenobi? Because I can. Or. He can talk to me. Even though he's dead." She shrugged. "Maybe we shouldn't name any of our kids 'Kenobi….'"

"Uh. Yeah, that could be... Awkward. Does he just show up anywhere? Any time? How's that work?" Finn asked. That was a little unsettling. "Wait, so isn't he like...your great-great grandfather? Will he be mad about Sam? Or— _us_?" If Obi-Wan's Force Ghost was unhappy with him, he wanted some warning. “Does he watch us—”

"Gods, no. He better not be," Rey said fiercely. "It just...he visits me, sometimes. I think he's there to help me, and guide me. He can't _do_ anything, even if he did disapprove." She sighed, resting against Finn's shoulder, and turned so they could keep an eye on Sam. They couldn't see much except his crib, but the monitors were green. "I hated seeing you in there, unconscious, when I had to leave for Ahch-To. I felt so—helpless. And now I get to feel it all over again."

"You're the only one who _wasn't_ helpless, sweetheart. You saved him. And we're not going anywhere until we get to see him," Finn reassured her. He shifted to wrap his arm over her shoulders, still combing his fingers through Poe's hair with his other hand. "That seems so long ago," he added.

"It _was_ long ago," Rey said, squeezing his hand. "It's been almost a year. We're going to be married, and we have a beautiful son. You're a _Major_ , and I'm a Jedi who may or may not be badass but can't follow the rules..." she laughed self-deprecatingly, and put her head in her hands.

"You know I still have nightmares? I guess I thought they'd just go away," he admitted. They were less frequent now, at least. He only rarely started forgetting where he was—BB-8 often recognized what was happening before he did, and was very adept at snapping him out of it. Dr. Kalonia checked in with him maybe once a month, now, instead of every week, so things _had_ gotten better. There was that much. "I guess a year isn't long compared to twenty-three," he admitted.

"Not twenty, either," Rey said with a shrug. "Hey! And since we found out what my birthday was—" (holonet research had revealed her birth records, and she had a birthday, officially now, and though they had just missed celebrating her twenty-first birthday, Poe had still promised her a proper party) "you should decide on a day for us to celebrate _your_ birthday." Before he could answer, she had ideas. "You could choose the day you decided to leave the Order. That's coming up, isn't it? Or the day after, when you met me." She winked. "Hm, was that too narcissistic?"

"Technically I decided to leave the First Order before Jakku. More or less. A method of escape was the only reason I hadn't left yet..." Finn answered. "And I'm pretty sure I met you the same day I met Poe," he added, trying to figure out if it counted as a day if half of it was spent in space where time wasn't measured in sunrises. "What day was that?"

Rey pulled up a galactic calendar on her datapad, calculating it based from Finn's medical records. "Well. This is embarrassing," she said, and laughed loud enough that Poe stirred. "It was yesterday." They took a moment to absorb that, and then laughed. "Okay. New day. Just pick something random. Maybe a week or a month from today?"

"But then I'll have the same birthday as Sam," Finn said, and when he turned to look at Rey, her eyes were wide and gleaming.

"That's it, you're having the same birthday. He's your _clone_ , Finn! It's perfect," she said, eventually, when she'd stopped giggling. "We could say your birthday is officially here," she said, pointing to the calendar.

"Whatever you want, sweetheart," he told her, and shook his head fondly.

"Now we havea few weeks to plan for your birthday. And Sam's first birthday. No, his zero birthday." Rey glanced at Sam again. "This is a good plan. I'm excited. Not every kid gets to celebrate their zeroth birthday, I bet."

"I have a feeling that happens when they're born, more or less—but you're right, probably not a party like we're going to throw him," Finn said. Rey already looked like she had plans, a lot of them, given her bright eyes and bright smile.

"What do you want for your birthday?" she asked him, and he shrugged.

"I don't know! I didn't know I was having a birthday! You can't just spring this on me!"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "No forgetting."

"Yes dear," he answered, and laughed when she glared at him.

"I like the sound of that. 'Yes, dear,'" Rey hummed, and kissed him on the mouth. "Would you like me to make, buy, or find you something, dear? And Poe and I can cook. Do you want flan, or chocolate cake, or something else?"

Finn hummed and nuzzled Rey's cheek. "You would make me something for my birthday? Usually you're taking things apart," he told her jokingly. "And you know how I feel about flan. And also chocolate cake." He looked over to the glass. "We're going to wait until Sam can join us, right?" he asked.

"He'll be better in a few weeks, won't he?" Rey said. "But I don't think he'll be able to have cake. Not for his zeroth birthday, anyway." Rey was tracing patterns on Finn's leg. She was very tired, and trying to distract herself. "I'll make you something. Made this," she said, patting her lightsaber. "And I'll make Sammy something, too."

"Sounds good," Finn agreed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We recognize healing/life/death Force using is as arbitrary a place as any to draw the Light Side/Dark Side line, and you're welcome to yell at us in the comments, but it's how Vader pretty famously went darkside so we think it would make sense for Luke and Rey to be worried about that? Also the whole issue of where does it stop (when do you, a Force user, get to decide who lives and who dies?)? Potential to be scary.


	15. Chapter 15

In 24 hours, Kalonia let them hold Sam again, provided they were sanitized to within an inch of their lives, and after they had cleaned and re-cleaned the surgery room. She let him out of intensive care a few days after that, and he finally opened his eyes. But it became clear within a  few weeks that he didn't seem to look at anything—not their faces, not the starfighter mobile above his bed, not bright lights or moving objects, all of which a baby _should be looking at_. His gaze would flick to them, but he seemed to be looking through them, and there was no explanation. They wondered if he had somehow lost his sight, but a scan proved that was not the case. He _could_ see, he just...didn't really seem to. It was confusing, because he otherwise seemed as normal as you could expect a premature baby to be who'd been "born" from a growth tank and had then nearly died (probably more than once).

They had worked out a system so that one parent could be with Sam at all times, but Finn and Poe could go back to semi-active duty, which was the closest thing the Resistance could give them to paternity leave. Rey could even continue training with Luke.

(“Am I going to be punished?”

“Rey,” Luke said, and he only sounded briefly stern: “I told you not to be afraid of me, ever.” He sighed. “You knew the dangers of what you did, you weighed your options, and you did it, anyway. If given a thousand opportunities like it, you would not have done anything different. What good would being punished do?”

Rey thought about that, and “Nothing,” she said, and if they spent the entire day meditating, it was out of a playful, petty kind of spite than a real punishment.)

It worked for them, taking nine-hour shifts with their son, overlapping an hour with one or both of their affianced, and the rest of the time to complete training exercises, run patrols, attend meetings, and eat and sleep mostly regularly.

Poe, who had been with Sam all day after eight hours in the air previously, was laughing—he was tired, but _happy_ —as he held the baby against his chest, burping Sam after a big meal. Sam was eating normally, even hungrily, now, which was a very good sign. "Eats just like his Daddy," Poe was telling Rey, Finn, and Dr. Kalonia, who were meeting during a rare evening together, to talk about Sam's health. "Blink and the food is gone. You know, Finn, I'm beginning to think the wolfing-food-down is a Finn-thing and not a First-Order-thing. Oh! And he pooped today! Didn't you, son?"

"Yes, Poe, you did already mention that," Rey said. Poe's _whole squadron_ knew that his son had pooped his first poop. It was a wonder it hadn't been announced on the PA.

Sam responded with a loud burp, which was startling coming from such a tiny body that had been so sick not long ago.

"And that's all good news. The rest we won't know until he is a bit older, I'm afraid. His reactions are abnormal, but not necessarily indicative of anything problematic. Human contact may simply be such a new stimulus that he doesn't know how to process it yet," Dr. Kalonia was explaining.

"But you said that was good for him!" Rey said. It surprised no one that she was fiercest in defense of their child, taking a tone with Dr. Kalonia that the Major didn't deserve.

"Of course it's still good for him," Poe soothed. "A baby who grew up inside a mom would have always known the sound of voices, and heartbeats, though, and he doesn't. It could be just taking him some extra time to figure it out, right? And us being here helps that, yes?"

"Yes, of course. It may just be—a learning curve. He's probably not used to all the sensory input," Dr. Kalonia said. Finn looked over at Sam, who was trying out new sounds. Currently, he was sort of warbling.

"But he's healthy otherwise, right?" he asked.

"Remarkably so, given where we were last week," the doctor said dryly, looking at Rey.

"Good. That's what matters," she said. Poe came over near her and she touched Sam's hand, which distracted him from warbling for long enough to grab her finger and wave her hand around.

"And look what he does when you touch his hand!" she laughed, delighted.

"All good things," Dr. Kalonia said. "All neurological scans are clear, too. There is physically nothing wrong with his brain or him—excepting the hand, of course, and even there there are no complications—we can talk about prostheses when he's older. You'll need to go to Coruscant or somewhere. We aren't equipped to do mechno-arms here, certainly not the kind he would need. And since you're right-handed, Finn, he shouldn't have much trouble until then." Dr. Kalonia paused, and smiled. "He is _very_ cute. A strong, handsome boy." She turned to Finn. "I'm sorry for what they did to you—at every level—but I think if anything could possibly make up for it, it would be Sam."

"Yeah," Finn said, "He's the only good thing that came out of that mission. He's the best thing." He made a face at Sammy to make him laugh, with mixed success since he wasn't really looking at Finn.

Dr. Kalonia stood up. "Now, this, you'll need to keep with your records. Poe I'm sure has a place for all this."

Poe's eyes in fact lit up, and he reached across the table to pick up the datachip. "Here you go, Sammy, you're official! It's his birth certificate," he explained, when Rey and Finn seemed confused.

"I put the official birth date as a week from today, to correspond with Finn's chosen birthday."

"Which is still weird, by the way. You don't want to share your birthday with your own kid! Who is also your clone!" Poe said, but Rey held up a hand:

"It's already decided, Poe!"

Poe rolled his eyes and flicked the hologram open in his palm. He immediately teared up. "Aww," he said, trying to swallow past the lump in his throat.

"Sam Dameron," it read, and it was the most beautiful birth certificate he had ever seen: "‘2.1 kg. 44 cm. Parents: Finn, Poe Dameron, Rey. Born: [Location Classified]’." Poe laughed at that last bit.

Finn looked at the birth certificate over Poe's shoulder and looked at Sammy, who had gone back to making little noises. "See that? We're officially your parents, little one!" Rey looked at it too and put her arms around their shoulders.

"You realize this means I can officially spoil him," she said, and Finn laughed, because insofar as she could, she was already doing that.

"No, no, you’ve got it all wrong. Rey's gonna be the strict one, Finn's going to be the reasonable one, I am the weak-willed and weak-minded father that situational comedy relies on." Poe chuckled. "I mean, Finn's going to be immune to those eyes, and Rey has the Force..." But of course Sammy wasn't looking at anyone yet, which was probably good for Poe. He shook himself and glanced up at the doctor: "Thanks, Dr. Kalonia."

She dipped her head, smiled, and left them alone.

Poe sighed and found a seat, switching Sam to a more comfortable position. "Well, I'm gonna fall asleep here any minute, so if someone wants to take him...."

"I'll hold him," Finn said, and reached out to gently take Sam and settle him in his arms. He looked sleepy too, his eyes drifting slowly shut as he squirmed until he was tucked more securely against Finn's chest. He yawned, which melted Finn's heart and caused Rey to make a high-pitched sound of cute overload.

"Force or not, I'm not going to be able to resist the eyes and this whole cute face thing he has going on," she said.

Poe hummed and leaned back in his seat, beginning to nod off before he moved to the bed (a larger one had been brought in specially for them). He had showered between flying and coming here, and he was basically ready to fall asleep, except Sam and Rey and Finn were so cute, and he kept looking at the datachip with Sam's birth certificate on it.

"Come snuggle with me?" he finally asked, scooting over and patting the bed. "Missed you guys all day." It was rare they saw each other all together.

Rey hummed in the way she did when he did something adorable, and ushered Finn to the bed so he lay down between them, with Sam on his chest and Poe and Rey bracketing him on either side.

"There we go. This is much better," Poe sighed.

Finn was pretty sure he wasn't tired, but Sam was a comforting weight on his chest and Rey and Poe were warm on either side of him. He found himself dozing, still aware of noises in the room or out in the hall, but not in the mood to really find out what they were. He wasn't sure if Rey was asleep, but Poe definitely was—his breathing had deepened and evened out. Finn sighed happily and let himself rest, though he opened his eyes to watch Sam and Rey and Poe sleep, content to stay here for as long as it lasted. After a while, he started humming, something from the middle of a song Rey and Poe sang sometimes.

"...Like a river flows surely to the sea,  
Darling, so it goes  
Some things are meant to be..."

He trailed off for a moment and grinned down at Sam, touching the back of his hand and smiling as he closed and opened his fingers, scrunched up his nose—his 'I'm waking up maybe' face—and opened his eyes to blink around at the world.

"Take my hand, take my whole life too  
For I can't help falling in love with you."

Finn continued singing. Sam made a grab for his finger, and Finn chuckled when he caught it and proceeded to wave it around like a prize. Or maybe he was just being uncoordinated—whatever he was doing, it was cute, and Finn laughed before singing the last bit again, this time just to Sam.

"Take my hand, take my whole life too  
For I can't help falling in love with you."

The infant’s eyes blinked open, gripping the finger tightly, as if afraid it might leave him alone again. But he had already forgotten, mostly, what it was like to exist in a tank.

He only knew, now, three warmths, three different heartbeats, three different voices, and he was beginning to recognize different shades of skin and clothes. He knew pain sometimes, and hunger often, but never for long.

Although Sam didn't know the word for it, yet, he knew gratitude.

He knew love, something he was never supposed to know.

And he knew singing. Singing was a special kind of voice, like a heartbeat. Singing made him want to stay awake sometimes, because it felt good to hear. But singing also made him want to sleep sometimes, because singing meant he wasn't alone anymore. It made him feel like he would never be alone again.

Singing meant he wasn't in a tank. That he was warm and loved.

Sam heard singing from a rare voice, but not a rare heartbeat. He recognized this chest, and this heartbeat. He liked the way he got confused sometimes where his skin ended and the chest began, because they were the same shade.

"Like a river flows surely to the sea  
Darling so it goes  
Some things are meant to be  
Take my hand, take my whole life too  
For I can't help falling in love with you."

Sam squeezed the finger in his grip, because it felt good to hold onto, though he wasn't afraid of being alone again. Not really.

But he could look up just to make sure.

And Sam wasn't sure why _eyes_ were _suddenly_ very interesting, and _mouths_ , and why that shape made him want very much to do the same thing with his own mouth—but it did. He wasn't sure why it filled him with delight, but it did.

Finn looked down when Sam stopped waving his finger around, expecting the infant to be asleep. Instead, his eyes met Sam's, and he gasped softly. Sam was _looking_ at him, not just seeing him. "Hey, guy, look at you!" he said softly, and raised his head to kiss Sam's forehead. "Sammy, you're _looking_ at me!" he laughed (or maybe cried, he couldn't be sure), which only caused Sam to blink solemnly at him and yawn. For a moment, Finn was sure that just like that, Sam would go back to seeing without looking, but when the infant opened his eyes again, his eyes tracked over Finn's face until he found his eyes, and then stopped and met his gaze again. Finn was going to wake both Rey and Poe with his weird hiccups as he attempted to stifle laughter and tears all at once so they could get their much-needed sleep and he wouldn't upset Sam, who had no idea how to respond.

Sam was determined to figure out this face-thing, to make the mouth-thing happen again, to mimic it properly, but all he succeeded in was drooling.

Rey woke, feeling a new presence, somehow, and she opened her eyes to see Finn and Sam looking at each other and sort of gurgling at each other. Finn seemed caught between laughing and sobbing, and Sam was trying to figure out how to smile or laugh.

"Oh, Finn," Rey said, kissing away Finn's tears, though her breath caught when Sam met _her_ eyes this time. "It's like he just woke up for the first time," she said, feeling an actual Presence through the Force, and she tickled his chin.

Sam, more animated now (and getting closer to figuring out actual laughter), squirmed against Finn's chest and flailed with his limbs, accidentally whacking Poe in the head. He went very still for a moment, and then did it again, apparently amused by the way Poe's hair sprang back against his arm after he squished it down.

"Sam, Sammy, easy, buddy," Rey said, now laughing helplessly.

"Ow, hey hey!" Poe grumbled, snuffling to wakefulness at an insistent pain against the side of his face. "Whosa—" he began, and opened his eye to see Sam looking at _him_ , and Poe lost all capacity to be mad and beamed. "Hey, buddy, what's up?" he wondered, as Sam kept patting his cheek, perhaps roughly, if he were any bigger, with his handless arm. "What're you doing, you naughty little hoojib?" He laughed, and nibbled down on the limb playfully, gumming and tickling with his teeth, and at that Sam let out a shriek and a cackle. Poe sat up. "Did he just laugh? Are you _laughing_ at me, little buddy? You laughing at your Papa?" He asked, a hand curling around his back and nudging against fragile ribs. Sam kicked in earnest, laughing so hard he was almost beginning to have trouble breathing, so Poe stopped.

Sam hit him again.

Sam's laugh was infectious, which Finn realized as soon as Sam giggled, still trying to convince Poe to be amusing again. Since they were all awake, now, Finn sat up so Sam could be in his lap instead of on his chest at an uncomfortably close angle to actually see him. When Rey leaned over from Finn's other side, the movement distracted Sam, and he stopped hitting Poe so he could let go of Finn and grab at loose strands of Rey's hair. He only narrowly missed, and only because Rey saw what he was up to and leaned forward to kiss all over his hand, eliciting a bright laugh and another little shriek, this time accompanied with happily kicking feet. "Oof, guy, go easy, huh?" Finn asked, poking at the bottoms of Sam's feet.

He should really have known better, because this only earned him, by far, the most squirming and kicking and laughing of any possible solution he could have come up with.

Finn barely blocked the flailing infant feet with the palms of his hands. "Now what on earth made you think it would be a good idea to tickle your own clone's feet?" Rey laughed, as an escaping limb whacked him quite hard in the stomach. "You deserved that."

"Easy there, you mynock jocky," Poe laughed, grabbing Sam's feet, beaming at all of them as Sam finally collapsed, whining slightly now, seeming to be annoyed that laughing was so much work. "Oh no, what's this? You mad, bro?" he said, and nibbled Sam's nose, which made him giggle and then yawn again, squeezing his eyes shut. "Well at least we know he can laugh," he said.

"He feels so good," Rey said, looking dazed. "Like he's an individual now, and not just like Finn. He's himself."

Poe's heart swelled, and he kissed Rey, and then Finn, and finally Sam, whose eyes were closed again.

"We have such a great kid," Finn said, "I can't believe we have a kid!" he added with a laugh. It was one of those things that seemed too good to be true. But it was true, and it was perfect, and his heart was full to bursting. "I love you. All of you. Hear that, little Sammy? We love you so much." He pulled Rey and Poe closer and kissed each of them.

Sam was already asleep again, having gone from zero to sixty to zero in that way that only small children could actually manage, and Poe was well on the way to joining him. "We should tell Dr. K," Poe said, and yawned loudly, and closed his eyes, snuggling back down around Finn. "But—in the morning. Not now." He sighed. "Love you guys."

"Love you, Poe," Rey said, and laid a hand on Sam's back. "I love you, too, Sammy. And I love you, Finn." She hummed and nuzzled against his neck.


	16. Chapter 16

The next evening, there was an impromptu party of sorts for Sam—a pre-party, to be technical—which really just meant that for the second night in a row, Finn, Rey, and Poe all gathered in Sam's room at the same time after dinner. This time, Dr. Kalonia took some time off from being a doctor and held Sam, who shrieked happily when she whirled him gently around medical. Leia, too, donned a gown and a cap to visit. BB-8 came too, and whacked into Finn's shins until he looked down at them.

[I have not greeted Friend-Tiny-Sam since he has upgraded to sentience!] they honked, [I want to meet him properly!]

"Okay, bud, okay. Sorry! Just a minute." He took a giggling Sam from Dr. Kalonia and sat down on the floor, gesturing for Rey and Poe to join him.

Poe dipped his head to excuse himself from Leia, and sat cross-legged with Rey on either side of Finn, across from BB-8.

"Sorry, buddy," he told the droid. "Sam will be very happy to see you."

Indeed, Sam was screeching and wiggling in Finn's arms, and BB-8 cocked their dome to one side and gave a friendly chirp: [Hello, Friend-Sam! You appear to be pleasantly online today!]

Sam also cocked his head, crossing his eyes, and drooled.

"I think he's saying hello," Poe offered.

[I know what he is _saying_ ] BB-8 replied indignantly.

Sam reached out to pat BB-8 and then whimpered when he couldn't reach the droid. This prompted BB-8 to roll closer and tip their dome forward where Sam could reach them. [I will teach Friend-Tiny-Sam Binary when he is older!] they announced.

Rey laughed. "I'm sure he'll be a very good learner," she said. "If you're willing to babysit, of course?"

BB-8 looked deeply honored. [I would protect him with all my circuits!]

Poe couldn't help but laugh, smile crinkling his eyes, at this interaction. Sam was poking the splashes of color on BB-8's hull, gurgling animatedly now.

[He admires your artwork] BB-8 informed them. [Oh, and I forgot to tell you how everyone else admired, it, too. C3PO found it especially lovely!]

Leia laughed. "I actually heard about that one. You caused quite a stir among the droid community, BB-8." She was smiling softly down at them, and Poe stood up.

"You haven't had a chance to hold him yet, have you, General?"

Leia looked surprised for a moment, but then she recovered and shook her head. When Finn stood, she gently took Sam from him and smiled as the baby regarded her solemnly, though the effect was somewhat ruined by his drooling.

It had been a long time since she'd held a baby, and it didn't escape her that the baby she'd last held like this was now the adult responsible for Sam being here. "Well, little one. I think you might be the youngest member of the Resistance, even in the civilians," she said to Sam.

Sam babbled at her.

"But don't think we'll go easy on you just because you're small and cute—I hereby order you to grow strong and healthy. I want you working on that round the clock," she told him, and he stopped babbling to blink at her. "And keep your parents busy. They're much less prone to trouble when they're busy..." She looked at said parents, one of which she remembered when _he_ was this age. Had it really been that long...?

Poe nearly choked up watching Leia hold the baby, and for a moment he saw her with dark curls and bright eyes like his mother, and then it was gone, and he smiled so he wouldn't cry. "That's not fair," he told her. "I'm perfectly prone to trouble when I'm busy!"

Rey slipped her hand into Poe’s, and gave him a strange look before smiling wryly at the General. "How does it feel to be a grandmother?" she asked.

Leia narrowed her eyes, and Poe and Finn bristled, but then she laughed: "It's nice to be old enough to become one, I guess."

"Hey, that reminds me, has Luke been by to see him yet? He might be Force Sensitive!" Poe said excitedly. “Should get that checked.”

"Yes, Luke was by earlier today," Rey informed him. "But I don't think you can tell that until they're a bit older."

"Speaking of, Poe, you have comm time later today. 2100. Call your father, or I'm sure he'll scalp me," Leia said.

"You mean he'll scalp _me_ ," Poe said.

"Do you think we can take Sam?" Finn asked, turning to Dr. Kalonia.

"I have been treating him to accelerate the development of his immune system... He is strong enough, if we take some basic precautions," she said. They would have to put a mask on him and those present in the comm room would also have to wear one. As a precaution, the number of people in the room would be limited in the first place, but it could be done safely.

"He won't get sick again, will he?" Rey asked, still worried, but Dr. Kalonia shook her head.

"His immune system is probably strong enough now to fight off anything we have here, but I like to be cautious," she answered.

"I'll ensure that anyone who has felt off in the past week will not be working while you're there." Dr. Kalonia looked over at Leia for permission to speak with the communications staff, but Leia was busy making faces at Sam (they all pretended not to notice) and merely nodded absently.

"Oh. Of course. I'll give the order. Have people sanitize their stations," Leia said, once she realized that they were waiting on her. She coughed, and then pinched Sam's cheek again.

"Try we're going to have to sanitize the communications room _after_ he's been through," Poe laughed, wiping the kid's chin again. "Are we sure nothing's wrong with him? No kid should drool that much."

Dr. Kalonia laughed. "Well, I can send you with a box of small masks if you'd like to protect yourselves," she said.

...

Hours later they were bundling Sam into a mask and a medical onesie that was entirely too big for him. "He looks like a fool. I can't present my father his first grandson looking like this!" Poe lamented.

"No way, he's the cutest. Aren't you, Sammy?" Finn asked as he wrangled Sam's arm into a sleeve. The child was, he swore, unnaturally gifted at squirming free of his onesie—already! It was frustrating, but it did mean Sam was feeling well enough to squirm, so Finn was less frustrated than he could have been.

"Anyway, your dad is going to love him. Even if he can hardly see him under this mask—it’s almost as big as his face!" Rey added.

Poe laughed and nodded and adjusted the mask. Sam was trying to get the mask off his face and was becoming increasingly irritated that he couldn't. "Hey, little man, you're okay," Poe told him. "I know you hate me, but I promise this is good for you. Your lungs will love me later. Yeah, I know, I know," Poe said, and it meant they were carrying a crying baby down the halls to communications.

"Here they come," said Connix, who was handling the comm for the evening. She smiled and cooed appropriately over the baby, even donning a mask and disinfecting her hands and the entire console before them.

"We trust you," Poe laughed.

"Well, we don't want the little guy getting sick!" Connix said, pulling faces at the baby until he managed a half-hearted giggle.

"What I wonder is, who are you, and what have you done with Kaydel Ko Connix?" Poe teased, and she pulled down the mask to stick her tongue out at him.

"Thanks, Connix. I owe you," Rey said, and Connix waved it off.

"Don't worry about it. I wanted to meet Sam," she admitted. "And also see you guys. You're all okay? We heard about...well," she said.

Rey shrugged a shoulder—she had new nightmares, now.

"It is what it is. I'll be glad when the casual mass-murdering stops," Connix said, clasped her warmly on the shoulder in agreement and went to raise Kes on their secured transmission frequency.

"Alright, everybody set? Dialing now, so stop picking your nose, Finn."

"My nose itched!" Finn whined.

Kes answered immediately this time, eyes crinkling into the signature Dameron smile. "Hey, hello, everyone!" he exclaimed. "Ah, you look so good! Rey! More beautiful than last time, and Finn, more handsome! Poe, mijo, you— _what are you holding_?!"

"Dad, dad, relax," Poe laughed. He was surprised he had gotten this far.

"Is that a baby?! Last time you were lecturing _me_ about—"

"Dad! Dad! Yes, it's a baby. Let us get a word in and we'll explain the whole thing."

Rey had forgotten how much she liked her future father-in-law. But as soon as he appeared on the screen, she felt a tug of familiarity, like she was seeing parents she'd never had. When she looked at Finn, he was grinning in a way that made her think he felt the same. "That's kind of why we're calling, Kes," she laughed.

"It's been a long few weeks," Finn added. Kes looked at the four of them.

"Okay. Start from the beginning. Don't leave anything out unless it's classified," he told them.

They told him the quick version about finding the cloning facility, and the tragedy of its destruction, and all the souls lost except for this little one. "And, Dad, he's Finn's clone, so he's our son, practically. Well, I mean, Finn's son. Ours by marriage. Soon." Poe moved closer, holding Sam up to the camera. "Sorry you can't see his face so good. He's gotta wear the mask outside medical, since he's...well, like, effectively premature?"

Kes said a string of words that Rey and Finn at first thought were Yavinese before they realized their father-in-law was in fact just baby-talking. "Hello, son! Oh, gosh, you look just like your daddy!" he cooed. "Ah! I'm a grandpa! Say hi to your grandpa!"

Sam looked a little confused about the projection of Kes that was taking to him, but he got over it quickly and babbled back at him, complete with flailing and whacking Poe, who was holding him, in the head. "His birth certificate says Sam Dameron," Rey told Kes, who held up a hand as if he could touch little Sam.

"Look at you, buddy. Welcome to the family," Kes said, his voice cracking a little bit. "Oh, hijo, I'm so happy. I'm happy for all of you."

Finn cleared his throat, then sniffed, and Rey tried to surreptitiously wipe some tears off her cheeks as Sam continued pondering Kes's projection.

"You're allowed to cry, you three! You're amazing, all four of you. I'm crying, look at me!" Kes laughed.

"We're a crying family," Poe explained, with a little laugh, and pressed a kiss to Sam's forehead.

"And we'll get them back for all the grandchildren I didn't get to have," Kes said, eyes suddenly hard. “Ten _thousand_ ,” he muttered.

Poe nodded. "Yeah, dad. We will."

Kes waved a hand. "Enough of that. Look at this precious boy! Oh, I can't wait to see him! I still have that carrier we used for you, Poe. The one your mom wore all the time, to take you flying and stuff."

"Oh, man, really?" Poe laughed.

"Of course, I never gave up hope on you, son." Kes winked.

"You have a carrier for taking children flying?" Finn asked, and glared at Rey and Poe.

“Well, it’s for anything, really. Just like a…backpack, but for babies? Parents took me on hikes up to the Temples and things in it, when I was too small to walk the whole way. And my mom would strap me to her chest and take me up in her old starfighter, yeah.”

This didn’t seem safe to Finn, but, "Fine, but no stunts that will make him puke!" he said.

Rey snorted softly.

"He can come see the farm!" Kes added happily. "What's he like, kids? Is he like our Finn?" he asked.

"He's stupidly ticklish, so, yeah. He kicked me earlier because I tickled his feet. And he likes singing," Finn said, with a dark blush.

"And he really likes Poe's quetarra, and being loud," Rey said. "And he does a really cute thing where he grabs your finger and waves it around!"

"Oh, so cute!" Kes said. "You know we sent Poe to live with his grandparents while we were still fighting the war, so if you need to drop him off, I'm just saying, I'm available."

"Dad, you're such a cheeseball," Poe said. "Finn says the war will be over by the wedding, so I think he can hang out on base for a few more months without getting into too much trouble."

Rey butted in. "Will you tell us embarrassing stories about when Poe was a baby?"

" _Oh look at that_ , I think we're out of time..." Poe said, and laughed.

"We have plenty of time for those later, hija, let me see this one. Much cuter than Poe! Cuter than Finn, too, sorry, son."

"Why does everyone keep saying that?!" Finn protested, and added sadly: "Just think: I was that cute once." He took a seat next to Poe and Sam, grinning as Sam noticed and reached for him demandingly. "Hey buddy! You gonna sleep good later after all this excitement?" he asked as he took the squirming child and received a bonk on the cheek that was probably meant to be a gentle pat. Sam's motor skills were certainly those of any normal infant... He didn't seem to quite know what his arms were up to at any given moment. "How are you drooling again? Kes, this child drools like you would not believe! Do you see this?" he asked, leaning forward with Sam so Kes could see the drool dripping through the face mask.

"He's going to live in bibs, probably," Rey added with a laugh. When she tried to wipe Sam's face, she blocked his view of Kes, and he shrieked indignantly. "I know, having your face cleaned is the absolute worst," Rey said dryly, and scrubbed her hand gently over the top of Sam's head.

"How is it getting through the mask?" Poe lamented, finding that there was a wet spot on his arm where he had been holding Sam around the middle. But he did smile to see Sam so taken with his father, and Kes so taken with his son.

"Ah, they do that, I'm afraid," Kes told them, laughing. "When are you coming? I hope you intend to come _earlier_ now so I have time to meet my grandson before the wedding! And how is BB-8? You enjoying being a big brother, Bee?"

[I am not an organic, Friend-Father-Kes, as I continue to remind you] BB-8 pointed out. [But yes, I am enjoying befriending Friend-Tiny-Sam! Also! Do you see my upgrades? I Am Art!] they declared, doing a little spin that made Kes laugh.

"Ah, yes, looking good, BB-8! Very handsome!" Kes laughed. "Is that for the wedding?"

"Dad, it's not for a few months still, seriously, calm down," Poe laughed.

"That’s right, a _few_ months! there's so much to do!" Kes said, and before they could stop him he was explaining the changes he was making to the house and all the food that had to be ordered in and who was preparing it, and who was invited and which temple they would have the ceremony in and how do you expect me to fit three hundred chairs in our lawn around the Tree?!

Before they really felt like they were caught up, Connix was waving at them to indicate that they had five minutes, and then one. "Hey, Kes, we've gotta go. We'll take lots of pictures of the birthday party for you," Rey said finally.

"Thank you for handling so much of the wedding!" Finn added.

"Wave bye to grandpa!" Poe said, helping Sam wave his arm in farewell.

"Bye, my sweet boy!" Kes said, laughing and waving back. "Be a good boy, and we'll see you soon! That goes for all of you. I love you, and be good."

"We will, Dad, love you too," Poe said.

The screen flickered off, and Sam immediately started crying.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning for hinting at past sexual assault. The First Order is shitty, folks.

"I know it may be the hardest possible thing I could ask you to do—" said Dr. Tamo Lan, the new psytech, speaking to Timons, her favorite and most difficult ex-stormtrooper patient.

Even the stormtroopers with the most racist tendencies seemed to like Lan, because she was an Ewok—she was 'cute,' she got it. Non-threatening. If it helped it her to her job, they could work on the more problematic aspects of their speciesism later.

"—But you should try to find some friends: people you can talk to. And do some things you like to do." Speaking Basic was difficult for Lan for long periods of time, but this was her job. Timons was a very rewarding patient, because they had made several breakthroughs already. However, today didn't seem like a breakthrough day.

Timons glared. That wasn't a fair request. The other former stormtroopers didn't like her or trust her, and she absolutely didn't feel comfortable going to Deeks or Major Finn about...well, anything. And she definitely didn't have things she liked to do. Stormtroopers—even specialists like Timons had been—didn’t have a lot of free time, and when they did, only Approved Activities were allowed. It wasn't as though she enjoyed running or being active, _ew_ , and she had never enjoyed reading the First-Order-Approved Literature (Propaganda). She kind of enjoyed computer programming and working with technology, but only because it helped her not to think. She didn't _enjoy_ it.

"I enjoy being alone?" she ventured.

Lan smiled. "Try again. There are many opportunities to try new experiences on base. You might find you like eating, or cooking, or playing games with others. We can put you on different service rotations to see—"

"No, please. I'd—I’ll find something," Timons said. Hadn't she done things she _hated_ to get out of those kinds of rotations all her life?

"Of course," Lan said, sensing she might have suggested the wrong thing. "You can choose what you'd like to try, of course. We could set up a crafting day, perhaps." She waited. Timons looked uncomfortable. "Are we done for today?" she asked, a little resignedly. She had learned the hard way not to push an ex-stormtrooper—not because they fought back, but because they buried deeper, always, and working with them again later would be harder if she pressed.

Timons nodded.

"Okay. We'll talk again tomorrow."

Timons fled the office, planning to go find somewhere quiet to—hide—

The sound of a baby crying made her stop. She clenched her fists, her whole body tightening. No. She wasn't allowed. Not _any more_ —

But here she might be allowed. Maybe? She could always—it wouldn't hurt to _see_...

Oh. It was coming from Medical. It was that new Clone baby, the one they said was deformed, that would have been reclamated in the Order...Finn would probably be there. And that Commander Dameron. She should—

But then Timons heard singing. A woman's voice. Rey? The Jedi? _Oh, hells, no_.

But Timons' feet were already guiding her into the Medical wing. Just to check. Certainly it couldn't hurt to just _look_ at the baby...

Timons loved babies.

Sam was being fussy, starting with whimpering and progressing to crying before Rey could even do anything about it. But she was accustomed to comforting him by now, and she scooped him carefully from the hospital crib to hold him close and sing to him.

She noticed Timons lurking around outside, but assumed she was looking for Dr. Kalonia, until she didn't go anywhere. Had it been anyone else, Rey would have gone to talk to her, but Timons was flighty, to say the least, and would probably only disappear if Rey addressed her directly. Instead, still singing, looking down at Sam's content face now that he was being held, she turned just barely toward Timons. She would know Rey could see her, but hopefully she'd also realize she wasn't about to chase her off or force her to engage in conversation.

Timons shrank back when she was sure Rey had seen her, but since Rey didn't call her out or say anything, just kept singing, like she was singing to comfort both of them, Timons didn’t flee outright. The baby stuck out an arm, his dark skin tone contrasting against Rey's pale freckled skin and gray Jedi-robes, and Timons just wanted that little hand to wrap around her finger...

No. She would get in trouble for that.

But. Not here? She was supposed to find something she enjoyed...

 _This woman's not going to let you hold her baby_ , she snapped at herself. _You're a killer. You're crazy, everyone knows. You could snap at any minute. You might drop him._

 _I've_ never _dropped a baby before!_

"I-is anyone else here?" Timons asked, quietly, in a lull in the song. She could maybe convince herself to come in if she was sure it was only Rey and the baby. Her longing was getting the better of her. No _wonder_ they'd taken her off crèche rotation. She was too easily attached.

"Just us—if you're looking for the doctor, she's in her office, I think," Rey said. She couldn't tell if Timons was uncertain or actually scared, but she kept her movement slow and nonthreatening. Mostly, she kept her eyes on the infant in her arms. Sam was waving his arms around, still seeming as if he was uncertain if he'd like to start fussing again. Rey tickled him gently with the hand that wasn't holding him and he grinned that adorable toothless grin he had. "Would you like to come in?” she asked Timons. “I don't bite...and Sam has no teeth, so it wouldn't matter if he did."

Timons looked around carefully, and, once she had determined it was entirely safe, she stepped inside. "I...came to see the baby. I haven't seen it yet," she murmured, and, not wanting to intrude, looked him over quickly. "He's very cute. He looks very strong. I think even the First Order would have rather got him a mechno-arm than reclamate him. If they had thought about it." Then she paled. "Oh, no. Wait. That was the wrong thing to say, wasn't it?" she began, already backing out.

Well, she'd seen the baby, and put her foot in her mouth. _The Jedi probably thinks you're completely insane now, or evil, great. What did you think was going to happen?_   "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bother you..." she stammered, knotting up and feeling like she needed to run, already turning and—

"It's okay, hey, it's alright, wait, please," Rey said, wanting so badly to hug this poor ex-stormtrooper, but knowing it was the last thing Timons needed. Rey didn't really know _what_ she needed—and Sam, who had stellar timing, was getting fussy again. He flailed both arms now, trying to wriggle around to see the source of the second voice he heard. "Sam, come on, bud, work with me," she begged the infant. He was having exactly none of it, though. "Timons, I'm sorry, I think—" she adjusted her hold on Sam and huffed a small laugh. "I think he just wants to see who you are. Would that be okay?" So much for quiet and slow movements.

"Could you tell him to let me know when he figures it out?" Timons asked, a bitter joke. She frowned, still standing at the door. Her eyes were caught by the little baby, so small and cute and helpless.

There she was, a slave to her sex, just as she was her whole godsdamned life, but—he was so cute when he smiled. Why was it _bad_ to think babies were cute? That was how species survived, wasn't it?

Timons still wanted to leave, but she wasn't sure she could anymore.

"You could hold him like this, with one arm, probably," she said, demonstrating by holding her arm out. "Balance him on your hip. The worry is more of the head going back than going forward. Then he can look around," she explained, somehow already in the hospital room, which, when she realized: "Uh," she coughed, and tensed again. "Sorry. You probably already know all this."

"No, I definitely don't. Kinda...learning as I go, here," Rey responded, trying to shift Sam to her hip the way Timons was showing her. It wasn't working, which only annoyed Sam. "Ooookay nevermind," Rey said to the infant. "Unless you want to show me—you don't have to." She had adopted the habit of making it very clear to the ex-stormtroopers that they didn't have to do anything just because it was asked. Otherwise they seemed to interpret questions as orders—especially Timons.

"Can I?" Timons was saying, her whole face brightening before she even knew what she was doing. Wow, she was really letting her guard down, and she hoped that was okay. "Um. I mean—I used to—work in the crèche. The nursery. With—um." _She doesn't want to hear your sob story_. "I would love to. Hold him," she said, but was waiting.

Rey could have cried at the delighted look on Timons' face, one she was sure she'd never seen. And then just like that, it was gone, as soon as she realized what her face was doing. Rey pretended not to notice, and instead moved to hand Sam carefully to Timons. "Ah—Finn has mentioned a crèche before." She wasn’t sure what else to say.

"Yeah," Timons said, focused on the baby now. "Sam, right? Hello, Sam," she said, not exactly baby-talk, but something significantly warmer than her normal register, as they transferred the baby between them. She tilted him gently back into her elbow, and shushed him as he began to fuss, missing his mother, but for some reason a fussy baby didn’t bother her or scare her. She knew how to handle a fussy baby.

"There we are," she said, getting the fragile bundle into position and holding him as she demonstrated, which, once in place, Sam seemed to enjoy because he could take in his surroundings like this. "Unless he's given to indigestion, and doesn't like pressure on his tummy, this is a good hold." She brightened with a sweet memory: "We had this girl who always had an upset stomach, but always liked to look around, and always like to be held. We would have to hold her like this, with both hands," she demonstrated with Sam. "She was a full-time job until she could walk." Which wasn't strictly true, as Timons had been reassigned before little GG-1870 could walk, but.

Rey watched as Sam calmed down and looked around, eyes bright and interested. He patted Timons' arm with both good hand and what they had taken to calling his “nubbin.” "Ah, see, he must be happy. He's drooling again," Rey laughed. "He is a very droolly baby. Dr. K says it's normal, though, so," she shrugged. The drooling was as quintessentially Sammy as his grin or his ticklish feet. "Um—if it's okay to ask... Why did they move you to the bridge of the _Vapor_ if you were originally in the creche?"

"I was, um, basically too good at my job," Timons said, bitterly. "We weren't supposed to form attachments to the children. As you might expect." Timons had never bought into the First Order's propaganda, something she was rather proud of. It was rather like being an athiest in a theocracy. So they controlled her through fear, and that worked well enough. She was less proud of that. "I was moved to specialist work because they thought I was pretty. The officers liked me." It was easier to talk while holding Sam, who seemed to calm her, but she couldn't help a nervous shrug. "I'm not really any smarter than—it’s all in the training." She shrugged again, shoulders hunching. "Um. So. He's turning, ah," she coughed, blinked, tried again. She had never been good at small talk, though it seemed the officers had always wanted her to be. "So, he's turning zero tomorrow, huh? We never celebrated birthdays for the little ones, but noted the stardate they came in, and counted galactic standard years from that day."

"Oh," Rey said softly, guessing why it had mattered that Timons was pretty, and feeling the Force knot up inside her in fury at the thought. "Oh, um, yeah. He's doing so much better, and we decided since Finn doesn't have a birthday either, we should celebrate them together." She watched Timons smile at Sam, who was blissfully unaware of any emotional distress from either woman. "You know, if you ever wanted to, I could introduce you to the people who run the nursery here. Babies are kind of an inevitable result of having this many people living together in close quarters, but someone still has to babysit sometimes." She knew Timons wasn't outgoing and didn't seem to like being around other people much, but Rey had heard the nursery workers were very friendly. They would probably be patient with Timons if she wanted to help them. Because if Timons liked anything, she seemed to like babies. "Or you can come visit Sam. One of us is always here," she offered.

"Oh, um, I don't want to bother...anyone," Timons stammered. How did you tell a Jedi you didn't want to be around her fiancés without getting force choked? "I probably need extra clearance to supervise children. Maybe new training. I imagine discipline was different there. I didn't like it." She squeezed Sam a little closer, holding him with both arms. "They could always threaten the infants if I..." She swallowed. "Sorry. I—sorry." She saw a shrink for this reason.

"It's okay, Timons. Really, and you're not going to bother anyone, either here or in the nursery, if you wanted to go there." Rey watched as the ex-stormtrooper who'd just been voicing concern that she might hurt an infant because she didn't know how they disciplined kids here hugged Sam close—she was so gentle about it that Sam seemed to like it. He burbled happily and snuggled right back. That child loved nothing more than snuggling...

"And, look,” Rey went on. “Maybe you need to re-learn some things, but we have some good people here, and they would gladly teach you. So would I, but I’m sure you know more than me. Any supervision in the nursery would merely be to assure you didn't have to handle anything on your own unless you wanted to—it would be to help you and teach you. And, I mean, I’m part of your Task Force, too, you know. It's my job to help you if you need it, but I also volunteered because I want to help." She looked at Sam. "Also, my kid likes you. For reference, he has been fussy with most everyone except us three and the General. And Dr. K, but he knows her pretty well at this point. He even gives Jess a hard time."

Timons dared to beam at that, smiling almost proudly. "Really?" she asked quietly. Sam liked her: _Plus one friend_! If babies counted. And—now that she mentioned it, Dr. Kalonia had told Timons she could go to Rey if she needed any counseling, because she was a Jedi and, despite what the stormtroopers had been taught, the Jedi were wise and kind. "He doesn't seem so difficult. If you ever need—help, you could let me know?" Rey nodded, and Timons pondered everything else that she said. "Dr. Lan wants me to find hobbies I enjoy. I think—I’d like to try helping out at the nursery here. If I'm allowed."

"Of course you're allowed! I'm sure they would love your help. If some of those kids are anything like their parents, they'll give you a run for your money," Rey laughed. _The Resistance did seem to attract certain personalities..._

"Want to help me put him back to bed? Or—feel free to keep holding him, if you want. He turns into a...I don't know. A brick? A heavy bag of sand? I swear the second he falls asleep he gains about ten kilos." Rey nodded to Sam, who was blinking sleepily, his hand curled in a relaxed little fist on Timons' arm. "I won't even make you converse. Unless you want to." There was a little starship mobile hung above his crib, and when Rey tapped it, it started spinning lazily, singing a soft song.

"I like talking," Timons said, shifting Sam so he lay back in her arms. She didn't want to put him down just yet. "Only, what does an ex-stormtrooper have to talk about?" She grinned suddenly: "Though, I'm not sure what an ex-scavenger has to talk about, either?" It was meant to be a joke, but she was pretty sure she had delivered it wrong, an apology already on the tip of her tongue.

But Rey laughed. "Let’s see, what might we have in common? I scavenged some old Imperial ships...and I lived in the belly of an old AT-AT... Oh! We could talk about protein rations. For example: did you know you can use them as molding clay?" she asked brightly, remembering the conversation she and Finn had had with Sevens.

Timons laughed, and then seemed surprised at her own reaction. "No! I didn't," she said. "I'm licensed to drive an AT-AT, though. Did you live in the whole thing? Or just part?" Timons brushed her fingertips over Sam's face, and went to lay him down, smiling. And—she didn't immediately feel like fleeing.

She didn't need to flee for the next half hour, in fact, as her talk with Rey turned to technical schematics and other things they both knew a lot about, and about computers, which Rey knew very little about but found interesting, and then about the Force, which Timons knew nothing about but found just as fascinating. By the time Finn returned, Timons managed to excuse herself almost naturally.

"Thanks, Rey, and I'll, ah, I'll be at Sam's party tomorrow. Wouldn't miss it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We know Tamo Lan is the name of another doctor in the EU, but we stole the name because we liked it.


	18. Chapter 18

Since Sam was released from medical, they spent more time on the _Falcon_ than in Poe's quarters. Finn's first day off with Sam he spent cleaning out Poe's _entire_ closet to turn it into the baby's room, and Poe couldn't even object because they had hung glowing stars and his starship mobile inside, so it was really cute.

But even then, and even though Finn and Rey had grown up with _nothing_ , they didn't really like the idea of their baby sleeping in a _closet_ , so they often slept on the _Millennium Falcon_ , where one of the storage rooms had been converted into Sam's room.

"It's just a bigger closet," Poe pointed out, but that was the wrong thing to say, apparently.

It was nice to have a _kitchen_ , though, on the regular, although they hardly had time to cook, or even access to ingredients that the mess hall didn't need, but Poe made a special supply run to have enough for Finn's chocolate birthday cake and flan. It was his "first" birthday, after all, and Sam's zeroth birthday, so they could go overboard.

The morning of the birthday, Finn woke early, prodding his beloveds into wakefulness. Poe took considerably less effort to stir than Rey, though once Poe returned with coffee, Rey was more amicable.

“I think I should get to sleep in on our birthday, Finn. Your birthday, whatever. I had _just_ gotten to sleep since Sammy woke up at—” she yawned. “Four.”  

But Finn bounded up. Since they were celebrating Rey’s birthday today, too, he had been _desperate_ to show her his birthday gift to her. "Yeah I know—that’s why we have to go before he wakes up again!" Finn said, waving the baby monitor in demonstration. He took Rey's hand. "Come on!" he said excitedly, like it was Life Day. "Hurry up you're both so slooooow I'm getting _old_ and Poe is getting _ancient_."

"Hey, watch it, pal, I know where you sleep," Poe grumbled, startling as Rey and Finn were both suddenly up. His betrotheds didn't usually move this quickly this early. Finn grinned like a man on a mission, and that was _always_ a good thing, so Poe clipped the baby monitor to his—well—sleeping pants—he hadn't gotten dressed yet, apparently—and followed.

"What's the rush, Finn?" Rey wondered. All her teeth showed when she grinned this big, and she caught Poe's hand as Finn dragged her off to one of the cargo bays, so they shuffled off like a very uncoordinated caterpillar. "What have you done to my ship?" she asked, becoming suspicious when he didn't answer.

Finn led them to one of the small cargo bays and stood outside the door bouncing on his toes. "Okay. Close your eyes, it's a surprise," he told Rey. His hand was just above the keypad, ready to enter the code to open it as soon as Rey closed her eyes.

Rey closed her eyes, and accidentally held her breath, squeezing Finn and Poe's hands. Poe had to cover his mouth with his other hand to stifle his giggling, because this was the cutest thing he'd seen since he said good night to his son.

Finn kissed Rey on the nose and then opened the door and led her inside, taking her to the middle of the room before he stopped. "You can look now," he said softly, and squeezed her hand.

Rey sucked in a breath so hard Poe muttered something about the air pressure in the room changing. Finn had lined the room with pots and rows of plants, and hanging from the ceiling were new, warm lights. "Oh! Finn! Is this—are these for—did _you_ do all this?" She wheeled on Poe, who held up his hands and backed away.

"No way, this was his idea. You honestly think you could see me lugging heavy pots around? Finn, buddy, this looks great!" he beamed, and Rey threw her arms around Finn's neck.

Finn held on to Rey and swung her in a circle before setting her down. She immediately started exploring, hands reaching to touch a leaf here and a flower there. There was even a small sitting area with a little round table and some chairs. Plants were on shelves to either side, their roots bathed in water that recirculated through all of the containers. Vegetables grew along one side, both leafy and not, and flowers grew on the other side.

"I'm glad you like it," Finn said happily, because Rey was beaming.

"I love it!" Rey said. "This is the best birthday present ever!"

"Oh, food!" Poe cried, suddenly jumping forward to inspect the vegetables. "Tiny carrots! Finn!" he exclaimed, and they were all laughing.

"No, hush, sorry, we're going to wake Sammy up," Rey said, shushing them and pulling Finn and Poe into one hug. "Thank you, Finn. I have your present, too, you know. Do you want it now? Mine's not nearly this wonderful, though."

"I think I get to decide how wonderful it is," Finn said. He threw his arms around Poe and Rey's shoulders. "I would love to open it now, but I can wait if you want to have a look around here first," he said, aware that Sammy could awaken at any moment. The kid seemed to have a singular knack for knowing exactly when to start crying—not that any of them begrudged him any attention. That was precisely _why_ things tended not to get done quickly when he was asleep.

"I want to go get it now. Don't move!" Rey said, "I mean, you can move. Don't leave. I'll be right back!" Rey said, and fled back to their room, to one of her hiding places, and she brought out a small flat box, on the surface of which she had drawn colorful designs and symbols. She returned and thrust it at Finn, but was already torn between watching him open it, and watching her lovely _garden_.

Finn already loved his gift and he hadn't even opened the box, recognizing the beautiful designs that Rey had hand-drawn to decorate the sides and lid. After taking a moment to look at them, he opened the box and peered inside.

He was pretty sure the pretty metal band inside the box was actually a necklace of some variety, and it was a beautiful warm gold. "Rey..." he started, voice soft, "It's beautiful—it’s perfect, how did you even _find_ it?" he asked in awe.

“Where’d you get that?” Poe exclaimed. When had she gone to a place that sold jewelry?

“Well, I had to trade some spare parts for the metal, but I made them!” she squeaked. Since Finn wasn’t touching it, she picked up the loop of metal—a torque, Luke had called it when she showed him—and wrapped it around Finn’s neck. “It’s not too heavy, is it? I can re-make it if you don’t like it. I’m almost getting good.”

“I’d say you’re better than good,” Poe muttered, running his fingertips over the gold against Finn’s skin. It looked small enough to wear comfortably all the time, but not so small that it didn’t stand out.

Finn grabbed Rey in a hug and pressed his face to her shoulder. "I love it. It's perfect—especially because you made it," he told her. It was a comfortable weight around his neck, resting softly at the hollow of his throat. "I love you."

"Eep!" Rey said as she was swallowed in a huge hug, and she laughed. "You're welcome! But that's not all—there’s one more," she huffed, as Finn finally released her so she could breathe, and she lifted up a small cloth tied with a string, and set it in Finn's hand. "It's not as pretty as our—well, open it!" she demanded. "I had some gold left over, and I thought you might like it...since you like fiddling with your locket..."

Finn raised his eyebrows in a little bit of confusion, but opened the gift and peered at it. It took him a moment to realize it was a sort of double-layered ring, and when he took it out to look more carefully, he realized the outside spun around the inside, without coming apart. He put it on and immediately started spinning it. "How'd you think this up? It's perfect, Rey. _You're_ perfect. And clever. And talented!" he laughed as he spun the ring.

Rey giggled, overwhelmed at how happy it made her to make Finn happy. She glanced at Poe, who was also beaming broadly and seemed to understand what she was feeling. "I don't know about that. I mean it's not perfect, it catches at certain angles, but...I'm glad you like it," she said shyly. "I'm still not sure it's as wonderful as a garden! This is a gift that keeps on giving!"

"Hey but _this_ is a gift for me, too," Poe pointed out: "he looks gorgeous. When do I get mine?" He winked at Rey.

"Your birthday is far away!" Rey protested. "Be patient!"

Finn took Rey's hand to lead her around the little garden, showing her all the plants. He'd talked to everyone he could think of about what plants to choose, preferring hardy species that wouldn't be damaged by a little bit of turbulence (though they were bolted down for the most part) or the occasional missed watering. There were some peppers, and large containers on the floor contained several berry bushes and a watermelon plant. Bright flowers grew in the relative shade of a motley assortment of spiny cacti and thick-leaved succulents, one of which had put out a long stalk with flowers. Rey was investigating these fellow desert-dwellers when the baby monitor crackled to life. "Right on cue, Sammo," Finn laughed.

Poe laughed. "It's fine, I got him," he said, heading towards the door when he caught sight of the chronometer. "I—wait—crap, is that the time? No, no, I don't have him, I'm supposed to be in the kitchens!" He held out the baby monitor. "Can one of you take care of Sammy? I'm so sorry, loves, I promise I've got him the rest of the day," he said, kissing them as he all but fled.

Rey giggled. "Sure, I'm sure we can work something out. I have a bit of training with Luke, but I think he likes to watch."

"I have a security meeting, but I can take him with me," Finn said, and Rey came with him to get Sam, who was fussing and whimpering in his cradle.

"Is it just the worst day for Sammy?" Rey asked, "Okay, okay, we've got you. Happy birthday, little one!" she said, and picked him up and held him against her chest. He stopped crying and settled down to mere whining, which stopped entirely once she kissed the top of his head and started rocking him. "That's my guy, huh?" she asked, and started humming a little song for him.

Finn stood and watched them and was pretty sure he melted into a little puddle of pure happiness. When Rey turned to him, he was wearing a silly smile, and she came over to kiss him before handing Sammy to him.

"Have fun on diaper duty, then," Rey said, but when Finn made a face, Rey rolled her eyes and took Sam back to change him. She was quite good at this, and wasn't as squeamish about messes as her fiancés. Sam was crying loudly by now, though, as he hated having his diaper changed, but he settled when Finn had returned with a bottle and Rey sat and fed him until he forgave her for the diaper thing. "There we go," she said, smiling up at Finn. "You look very handsome in that necklace. I want everyone to know that I want my fiancé to have nice things." She giggled. "Want me to help you put the baby wrap on?"

The wrap was a long stretch of soft cloth that could be wrapped around the body and tied so that Sam could sleep snug against their chests, mostly, so far, for walking around the base or the Falcon. It was more finicky than the backpack-carrier Poe had described, but it was what they had for now. "Are you excited to go to your first big Resistance meeting, Sammy?" Rey asked, rubbing his head as Sam thrust his arm through the wrappings to flail about.

Finn laughed at the arm that waved defiantly from the cloth, which made Sam giggle—he seemed to like laughter, especially if it bounced him on someone’s chest. "It's going to be very exciting, I'm sure. Have fun training," he told Rey as they left the room and turned to head different directions. He walked into the meeting just shy of early, and signed not only himself as in attendance, but also little Sam, who was burbling happily against his chest.

"Afraid we won't know who to blame if we have any intelligence leaks?" Major Brance teased, sliding up behind Finn to also enter his name into the meeting roster. Statura, Ematt, and Ackbar were all in attendance, and all three gathered around Finn under the pretense of wishing him happy birthday and inquiring after various reports and projects but were _really_ there to say hello to Sam.

"Ahem," Leia said. "If you gentlemen are finished cooing over the newborn, I'd like to get this meeting started and over with. Some of us have a party to get to." She winked, and Statura at least blushed scarlet, and they sat down to meet.

Leia reported that her diplomatic mission with Luke to Coruscant had had limited success, but it was better than no success. They had new recruits to process, and a few more funding sources, and a few senators had got off the fence in support of the Resistance. It was becoming increasingly clear that those who were still claiming to be “moderate” were probably supporting the First Order, she reported, and politics were getting…ugly. Powder keg ugly, and, she confessed to the gathered officers, they needed to make sure to be on the right side of that explosion, or they would lose the galaxy.


	19. Chapter 19

Because the entire resistance base was out to celebrate, Poe was actually going to be making five flans and five chocolate cakes so everyone could get a taste. The kitchen staff was helping, though Poe begrudged handing over his family's flan recipe. They had converted the hangar, packing the ships tightly to one half, and all nonessential personnel were there to pay their respects to Finn and his son. "It's also Rey's birthday, observed," Poe reminded everyone. "And we'll get you properly next year, sweetheart."

"Ah, so the cake is for me and the flan for him?" Rey asked.

Poe shrugged. "Sure."

Jessika was exercising her maid of honor muscles early, bossing people around as they arrived, sorting presents for Finn, presents for Rey, and presents for Sam into three piles, and making sure no one had more than one dessert because "There's a war on, people, we're rationing."

Snap was exercising his best man muscles by getting drunk and starting up a jam session.

While Finn and Rey got their share of "happy birthday"s and numerous congratulatory handshakes and hugs, Sam was certainly the most popular, and he seemed to know it. He seemed torn between being shy and wanting to be friends with everyone within reach. Eventually he compromised by clinging to Finn's (or Rey's, or Poe's) shirt while looking around wide-eyes and smiling at everyone who greeted him.

He had just fallen asleep in Finn's arms when Deeks showed up, trailing ex-stormtroopers like ducklings. "Oh, he's very little!" he said, grinning broadly, "He's your clone, huh?" he added.

"Yeah. There were…so many of them," Finn said. He smiled down at the sole survivor, fast asleep in his arms.

"I'm sorry," Deeks said, and they were both quiet while watching Sam sleep for several breaths. "We'll get them. Jess says the General says you can't just fuck around with the balance of the galaxy that way and not piss off the Force pretty spectacularly," Deeks said eventually, and Finn nodded in agreement. "Okay so happier thoughts: have you _seen_ Jess and Sevens lately??" he asked, and Finn had to laugh at his exuberance. Deeks loved to gossip almost as much as Snap Wexley. "They're totally flirting! But I asked Jess about it and it made her grouchy..."

Poe stepped up, putting an arm around Finn. It was almost flan time, and he wanted to make sure his fiancé was first (or at least second) in line. "Don't bug her about it," he told Deeks. "Conflict of interest, chain of command thing. Once Sevens is off 'probation' and not answerable to Pava, they can do whatever they want. Until then..."

Deeks nodded solemnly, understanding well for someone so young. But then, he had worked with Timons, so maybe he knew even better than Poe. "Okay. I just think Sevens really likes her. And if _I_ can't marry Jessika Pava, someone should..."

That made Poe laugh, and he moved in and gathered Sam up from Finn's arms. "About to serve cake, buddy. You better go stand by Rey." Sam was sound asleep through the transfer, and would likely sleep through his birthday song, but that was okay. He'd be awake to smush cake into his face for the next one.

Finn looked over toward the cake and, more importantly, the flan. He found himself with a trailing shadow and turned to raise his eyebrows at Deeks.

"Have I ever told you you're my favorite person?" he asked, unrepentant.

"Oooh, I'm telling Jess," Sevens said, having snuck up behind him, and he jumped, to their amusement. "Guilty conscience?" they asked.

"Come on, Sevens. _Come on_ ," he said, and Sevens gave him their best inscrutable look. "You know Jess is my favorite! I just—"

"Oh, I see how it is! You only like _me_ when you might get flan before everyone else out of it..." Finn said.

"That's not the only time I like you!" Deeks wailed, and Sevens and Finn looked at each other and then dissolved in laughter. "Don't _laugh_!" he added, which only made both of them laugh harder.

"Alright, alright, stop embarrassing yourself. I'll make sure you get a piece of flan. You too, Sevens," Finn offered. But Sevens smiled nervously.

"I think I would prefer the chocolate cake?" they asked, and Finn smiled. They were finally expressing preferences for things—that was good.

"Yeah of course. And you're in luck, because Jess is cutting that one," he said, and their eyes lit up. They excused themselves and went to talk to Jess, while Finn went to talk to Snap, who was cutting the flan (because of course he was). He realized that Deeks hadn't followed and saw him standing awkwardly trying to decide if he was allowed to. "Get over here, you weirdo," Finn said fondly, waving him over. "Someone may be rivaling you for unashamed love of Poe's cooking. Someone other than me, I mean," he informed Snap.

"To be _fair_ ," Poe said, ears turning pink at the praise, "the kitchen crew helped me with these, so you should thank them."

A loud whistle startled them, and they turned to see Connix—her whistle impressive—motioning for the General to fill the silence.

"I think we would be remiss if we didn't all sing a happy birthday chorus to Finn and Sam, whose birthdays are today, and to Rey, whose birthday we missed. I think everyone here will agree that if you hadn't been born, we might not be alive. We wish you a year of happiness and freedom—and peace, if we're lucky." She raised a glass and began singing, and the whole base joined in.

Then there was a sort of mad scramble for the cake, at which Sam woke up and started crying. Poe, in his duty as babysitter, moved a little off from the crowd to soothe him, and ducked into the _Falcon_ to finish wrapping his gifts.

"Happy birthday, sir! Sorry we're late, we just got off our shift!" Torch said as he and Reist and Coni ran up, bearing gifts, to Finn.

Finn grinned brightly at his three soldiers and there were handshakes and hugs all around as he greeted them. He'd been so busy lately that he'd hardly had a chance to train at all, much less with his soldiers. "You aren't late, we still have food!" he laughed, nodding to the cake and the flan. They didn't need to be told twice, but returned quickly, dragging Rey, and waited eagerly for them to open their presents.

Finn opened a small knife (from Torch), gloves to use for training (Reist), and, of all things, a picture of a rolly desk chair. He raised his eyebrows at Coni.

"I couldn't bring a desk chair in here! It's in the weapons room. You can use it for all that wonderful paperwork you're going to have to do now that you're a Major," she said, and cackled, which made Rey cackle too.

"You're a smartass," Finn informed Coni. "And you encourage her!" he added to Rey. The two women looked at each other and then high-fived.

Finn and Rey got quite a haul between them, and Poe eventually returned so that Sam could go through "his" presents—that were mostly diapers and formula and onesies, though there were a few toys and pacifiers in there, too. Rey nearly choked up at every gift, no matter how small, because you didn't _give_ people things on Jakku, and she had never owned a lot. Now she owned _a lot_ : new clothes, old clothes, weapons, knick-knacks, copies of new holos and novels to load to her datapad, jewelry that was handmade and bought and hand-me-downs. Rey loved everything.

At the end of the line stood Leia, with a gentle smile on her face that, if Rey didn't know any better, seemed to have a bit of a bite to it. More than usual. She handed Finn a datachip. "Command of your first mission," she said, and the room burst into applause. "Only—don’t read the briefing until the morning." She winked, and then straightened, addressing the assembly: "Don't break anything, now," she said, "and I want this hangar ship-shape by midnight."

"Yes, ma'am," Poe said. "I would salute, but," he motioned to Sam, who gurgled and drooled in his arms.

Finn stashed the chip in his breast pocket to look at later and gave Poe and Sam a hug, and Sam an extra tickle because it made him giggle and Finn could not get enough of his tiny laughter.

"Hey, come here buddy, my turn to hold you," Rey said, swooping in to steal some time with Sam. She whirled in a circle and he screeched happily, death-gripping her shirt for all he was worth. "Okay. Daddy has to open Papa's present, okay? We're gonna watch," she told him, and then looked at Finn and Poe expectantly.

"What, here?" Poe said, squeaking perhaps more than he intended to. "No, they're all in the ship."

"Watch this one," Iolo said. "He'll tie a bow around his neck and say he's your present."

Everyone laughed, and though Poe blushed, he laughed along. "That wasn't...my _only_ present!" he protested, and while everyone was still laughing, he turned to Rey and Finn: "Later," he said earnestly.

Rey grinned. "Ooh, aren't you mysterious!" she exclaimed, and kissed Sam's head. "Okay, well, should we help clean up?"

"Oh, no, that's my job," Poe said, standing up. His job was mostly to delegate, though he helped move the Starfighters back to their usual spots on the tarmac when things had been tidied up.

"You want to stay for the jam session?" he asked, since there were a few people still out with instruments and booze. Sam was asleep in Rey's arms.

"We could stay for a few songs?" Finn suggested, because he really did want some quiet time with Poe and Rey, and Sam would wake up eventually. But jam sessions were one of his favorite things, and if the amount of alcohol people had consumed was anything to go by, tonight's would be more exciting than most.

"Anything you want, handsome," Poe said, kissing him, and, well, since they did want to hang out... "I'll be right back," he said, ducking into the _Falcon_ 's smuggling cargo holds (he never thought he'd be smuggling gifts for his affianced) and coming out with two large boxes, wrapped with colorful paper and huge ribbons, one stacked on top of the other. "Okay, be careful, these are fragile," he said, as Finn helped him set them down. "For you," he told Finn, handing him a blue box, "and for you," he said, handing her a yellow box. "I'll take the kid."

"Where's your quetarra?" Rey asked as she handed Sam back over so she could open another present.

"Well, I probably won't need it tonight," he said with a smile.

"Why wouldn't you—" Rey started, but as she opened the box, it became clear why. "Oh, Poe," she said as she lifted a beautiful small stringed instrument from the box. It was smaller than Poe’s quetarra and rounder in the body, but it was beautiful. It was the most beautiful present she'd received, and she promptly started crying, stroking her fingers gently over the strings to hear it. It was even tuned, and it was perfect, and she was never letting it out of her sight...

"So that one doesn't have the same strings as my quetarra, so I can only show you a few things with it, but I know you'll pick it up..." Poe began, but Finn had opened his, too, and now they were both looking down with damp eyes. "Finn's and mine have the same strings so...you guys could also switch, I wouldn’t be offended. And. Well—well don't—aw, see I knew I should have given them to you later," Poe teased, giving Rey and then Finn a shoulder squeeze and a kiss.

"I saw one of these once—someone traveling through Nima Outpost had one," Rey said. She strummed the strings again and listened to the sound. "I love it. Thank you," she told Poe, and shifted get hold on it so she could hug him right with one arm.

Finn, apparently already engrossed in figuring out how to play his—well, it looked like a tiny quetarra—was strumming the few chords he knew. It was a happy-sounding little instrument, and he grinned, stopping the reverb with his hand and likewise putting an arm around Poe's shoulder.

"I love mine too. You chose perfectly," he said, and gave him a kiss.

"Hey! Are y'all joining us?" Iolo called from halfway across the hangar, and Finn laughed.

"Be more patient!" Finn yelled back.

Poe beamed like he was going to light up the world with his smile. One for one so far! Two for two, if you counted the cake, and he was pretty sure his gifts only got sappier from here...

"Great!" he said. "So you serenade me and Sammy tonight." He grinned. "You guys look cute with your instruments like that. We should start a band, you know, when the war's over."

They made their way to the circle of musicians, mostly tipsy at this point, except for Snap, who was definitely Drunk.

"Well, I only know the three chords, so it won't be the best song, but Rey will make up for it. At least she can actually sing," Finn laughed. They joined the group and Finn and Rey both had to show off their new instruments before anything else could get done. But eventually they settled, more or less, and Snap was easily convinced to start the first tune.

Even though his arms were occupied, Poe could sing, would never not sing, and the way Finn and Rey looked at him, and the way Sam gurgled contentedly and turned his ear to his chest made Poe feel ten meters tall and like he could take on the entire First Order himself. They liked his voice, and he liked singing: win-win. And he and Rey harmonized so well together, almost instinctively, and Finn knew way more chords than three, or at least he was picking them up quickly. Snap and Iolo and Reist and Coni were the last ones to stay out with them, along with Deeks, though Deeks had fallen asleep.

"Cause they got the cages, they got the boxes  
And guns  
They are the hunters, we are the foxes  
And we run  
Baby, I know places we won't be found  
And they'll be chasing their tails tryin' to track us down  
Cause I, I know places we can hide  
I know places, I know places."

At one point Rey traded Sam for the mandolin, and Poe joined in on the song, singing to his lovers and his kid on their birthday and he couldn't have been happier:

"Lights flash and we'll run for the fences  
Let them say what they want, we won't hear it  
Loose lips sink ships all the damn time  
Not this time  
Just grab my hand and don't ever drop it  
My love  
They are the hunters, we are the foxes..."

Finn smiled as the last chords of the song drifted to quiet. "So the two children are asleep..." he said fondly, looking from Deeks to Sam. That Deeks didn't immediately resent it was a pretty good sign that he was well and truly out. Finn yawned.

"Think it's time to go to bed," Rey laughed, and Finn nodded agreement. Snap reached over and shook Deeks's shoulder to wake him, and he started awake with a confused flail.

"Go sleep in your bed," Snap told him, and he stumbled upright.

"Yeah ok. Happy birthday Finn, Rey, Sam," he mumbled, and then wandered off.

"Precious," Poe said, staring after Deeks, and then he blushed. "Something about the kids activates my maternal instincts,” he joked. “Night, Snap, night, Arana." He grinned at his lovers when they were left alone. "So I hope you two have been good and haven't snuck into the _Falcon_ today."

"I was good! I almost forgot, but I remembered at the ramp," Rey said, and Poe kissed her.

"Well, good, because I've got a few more surprises."

And indeed, when they stepped inside, everything had been cleaned and organized from top to bottom, to even stormtrooper-standards. "You two want to put the kid down and meet me in the galley?"

Finn and Rey looked at each other, grinned, and went to tuck the still-sleeping Sam into his crib. Once they were sure he was settled and still sleeping, they practically ran to the galley to find Poe.

There Poe had set up a romantic dinner—but not quite a _dinner_ because no one was hungry—by laying a tablecloth over the holochess table, and set out flowers, candles, and a bottle of rather expensive wine. There were small snacks: fruit and cheese and chocolate, and there were a few small wrapped presents waiting on the bench. "I wanted to get you two alone before you got the rest of your presents from me," he said, opening his arms wide. Sure, the baby monitor was clipped to Finn's belt, but they were sure to be undisturbed for at least a few hours.

"This is incredible! You're incredible," Finn said, and swept Poe into a tight hug and a prolonged kiss. Rey, not to be left out, put her arms around both of them and waited patiently before stealing her own kiss.

"There are _more_ presents?" she asked in amazement, about to cry again. “I’m not sure I can emotionally handle more gifts.” Poe had found their favorite foods—the fruit they all loved, and some cheese she'd never seen before, and _chocolate_. She kissed Poe again and Finn moved so she was between them, and they just stood there leaning on each other and loving each other for several moments.

"Well, if this is how you say 'thank you,' it should be your birthdays every day," Poe tried to make light of the situation, even though seeing Rey and Finn go all to pieces over gifts he gave them was, well, definitely among the top five things that made _Poe_ happy. Which probably wasn't a very good reason to give gifts, but it didn't keep him up at night. "Anyway, by my count I have forty-two years of birthdays to make up for," he said. "And don't thank me til you open the presents. And you can’t have the presents until we have a glass of wine and a toast." He broke away to pour glasses, and Rey and Finn exchanged shy and happy grins.

Finn took the glass of wine that Poe handed him, and Rey took hers. She was eyeing the chocolate, trying to decide if they were allowed to eat before the toast (not because she was hungry, but because _chocolate_ ). Finn smiled and took a piece off the plate and held it up. She rolled her eyes at this display of affection, but ate it from his fingers, which surprised him. "I thought for certain you'd bite me..." he said shyly.

"Only if I get to watch." Poe chuckled softly and stole a kiss from Rey to taste the chocolate. "Okay, so, a toast: to the two most wonderful people in the world, I am so glad you were born, glad you are a part of my life, may you have another year even better than the last one." He clinked their glasses together and took a sip. "And eat, please, and sit down. Your gifts kinda...match, so here, open these first," he said, handing them two jewelry boxes.

"These look suspiciously familiar," Rey giggled. "Like the ones our lockets came in?" She opened it. "Poe! This _is_ my locket!"

"Turn it on," Poe said gently.

Rey clicked the locket on at the same moment as Finn, and they both gasped softly. Poe had loaded new pictures into their lockets: Rey smiling at Sam as she put him to bed, clearly unaware that Poe was talking a photo, Finn laughing as Sam grabbed at his finger, and a picture they'd had BB-8 take of all of them. Poe was in the middle, holding a squirming Sam, and Finn and Rey were laughing at them. In the next picture, Poe had calmed Sam down, and they were all smiling at the camera, a happy little family with a grinning kid. As they flicked through the images, there were more of Sam and all or some of the three of them, taken from when he'd still been a tiny, frail bundle in a crib in medical.

"These are beautiful," Rey said softly, having paused on their family picture.

"I didn't know you were talking all of these," Finn added. He was looking at one of himself, asleep, with Sam on his chest, also sleeping.

Poe beamed, glad he could skip through the 'Oh you like them?' BS, and he had to blink rapidly because they were just _so_ sweet about gifts, because they had never been given any, and it made him feel guilty (both that he had had gifts growing up, and because he basically had a monopoly on seeing them like this, and also because he could have given them stones and gears and probably gotten the same reaction). "Yeah, I asked BB-8 to do a lot of them—and, well—I _do_ have experience in covert ops." He winked. "Anyway, you're welcome, now open these." These packages were bigger, and the paper they were wrapped in crumpled around them, for they were soft and squishable. "Oh, and I got Sam something to match. I don't think he'll be mad if you open it for him."

Finn opened his gift and laughed. "It's the jacket! I get to keep it, huh?" he joked. He was even being earnest—Poe could have given it to him ten times and he would have loved it every time.

"Flip it over," Rey suggested, and when he did, he found a new patch on the shoulder. Finn laughed brightly, recognizing the insignia of a Major.

"This is great! I'm never taking it off," he said, throwing it over his shoulders.

Poe laughed at Finn's comment: "You hardly ever take it off now, " he said. "Sorry it looks like I'm re-gifting everything."

Rey shook her head fondly. She opened her own present and for a moment was overwhelmed by orange—flight suit orange. There was one that looked like it was her size, and a tiny one made of softer material, but no less orange.

It was maybe the cutest thing she'd seen since Sam when he was sound asleep.

Poe turned to Rey, who was making high-pitched sounds over the orange onesie that was printed to look like a flight suit, even as she slipped into the one for her. "That's really a selfish gift, it's so you stop stealing m—" but she cut him off with a rough kiss.

"I'll still steal yours. But thank you. "

Poe grinned. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

Finn, not to be left out, leaned on Poe's other shoulder and wrapped Rey and Poe both in a hug. He pressed a kiss to Poe's cheek and then rested his chin on his shoulder with a contented sigh. "I love you. Thank you for the presents," he told him.

"Sweetheart, I'm not _remotely_ done," Poe said with a laugh, "though I'm beginning to entertain the possibility that I might have gone overboard."

"Just a bit," Rey agreed, but she was smiling like this was the opposite of a problem.

"Here—these are—your last real presents. Ah. I'm not—" Poe was suddenly nervous as they each unwrapped a small journal with a plastic cover and colorful pages of flimsi inside. "Okay, so I'm not crafty, remotely, but I found these little notebook things in these nice bright colors, and I thought of you guys, so I bought them—a while back. I could...well, I thought I was going to write poems or love letters, and then I realized I suck at both." He laughed. "So, ah. It's a coupon book." Poe realized suddenly that they may not have any notion of what that _was_ , so he hastily explained: "Mostly full of things that would be no hardship to give you, let me tell you," ('30 Minutes of Oral Sex' and 'A Footrub' and 'One Full Night of Snuggling and Kissing') "and some things that might annoy me but that you deserve," ('One Room/Project Cleaned and Organized' or 'Diaper Duty' or 'You Can Tell Me "No" Without A Reason And I Have to Listen'). They were dated variously 'One Use Per Week' or day or month, and all said specifically 'No Expiration.' They were personalized, and though Rey's and Finn's had some that were the same, many were different. Rey and Finn weren't saying anything, so Poe went on. "I just—I know you guys have a hard time asking for stuff, sometimes, and I can be selfish sometimes, so...yeah. And this isn't to like, commodify our relationship, or anything," he said with a glance at Rey. "They're more of a joke, or—more playful. Me listing stuff you deserve that I can give you. It’s kind of a common couples gift, but if you don’t like it—"

"Is there a 'Shut Up You're Talking Too Much' one?" Rey asked, flipping through the book, and Poe laughed, tension dissipating.

"Ah, _somehow_ I managed not to include anything like that." He winked.

Finn laughed, flipping through the book and finding a coupon for flan—Rey had a matching one for _empanadas_ , which meant at some point in the future there would be a feast. "Okay but there are these ones that say you have to do whatever we tell you without arguing about it," Finn said. "So if one of us, say, used it and told you you're talking too much and it makes it hard to kiss you properly, technically you'd have to be quiet and let us kiss you!" he said, and Rey grinned:

"I like that coupon. We could find all kinds of things to do with that coupon," she said, and she was so obviously thinking past kissing that it was almost comical.

Poe laughed, cheeks turning pink. "Yeah, I thought you could find one or two uses for that one. You'll note it's only once per day, though, so you'll have to be judicious." He winked.

"Yeah, but Finn and I both have one, so that's two per day if we agree," Rey cackled, and then threw her arms around Poe so hard he almost went back in his chair. When Finn joined her he _did_ go back in his chair, and they all hit the ground in a pile.

"You even cleaned the floor!" Finn yelped after he had kissed Poe thoroughly again. "So I guess we won't need to use that coupon any time soon." He made himself comfortable and nuzzled Poe's neck (and maybe he nipped a little, but he would admit nothing).

Poe laughed. "Hey, I know I can't cut corners with you people," he said, and lifted his head. "Watch it! Don't kick the table, that wine—I practically had to sell my left nut to get that wine—"

“Mm, I hope you didn’t actually do that,” Finn said, palming at the front of Poe’s trousers.

" _Ohh_ , yeah. I mean, no. No, not actually,” he groaned, drawing in a sharp breath as Finn bit his neck. “Hey, w-wait, this is supposed to be _your_ birthday..."

"I think we said that when you talk it makes it too hard to kiss you," Rey said, grabbing his cheeks so that when he spoke, as he inevitably must, he looked so much like a fish that Rey laughed and released him.

"But I have one more present to give you!" he said. "And I need my mouth for this one."

"Hmmm, well, okay," Rey said, but gave him another kiss just for fun. "This is so many presents, Poe—are you sure you're supposed to get us this many?" she added a little uncertainly.

"It's okay! We have time before his birthday. We'll get him too many presents too," Finn reassured her. He was eager to pick out things Poe would like...

"Well, I mean—" Poe laughed. "It's kinda lame. _Super_ lame. Like all my presents haven't been me rolling out the cheese at all levels." He squirmed. "Let me sit up, at least, I have a speech!" he exclaimed, tickling Rey and Finn until they wriggled off of him, and he sat up, folded his legs beneath him, and took their hands.

"Okay. My last present to you is me. No ribbons or jokes or 'I'll blow your mind tonight, baby,' just _me_." He chuckled. "I'll blow your mind _any_ night—I think there's a coupon for that—but, I just want you to know that now and every year from now on, I'm yours. I will love you, I will love our kid, I'll take care of you and let you take care of me. I can't promise I'll be perfect but I promise I will be yours. And I'm going to be my own person and let you be your own people so it's not creepy or whatever, but I am going to be your husband, and that means I'm your partner, for the rest of our lives." He gave a small shrug. "It's—not much. But it's everything I have." Poe bit his lip, waiting. "Sorry, uh, that was the end of the speech. That was it. I'm such a cheeseball!" he laughed, and covered his face.

"Oh my gods stop talking you're ruining it," Rey said when Poe finished his speech by immediately criticizing himself. "Poe, the best present you could ever give to me is you. You could give me no other present for the rest of our lives and it would be more than any soul could ever deserve—but I'll do what I can to deserve it," she said earnestly. Finn, who was practically vibrating with the need to say something, waited until Rey smiled at him.

"It's the only present you could ever give me that no one could put a price on. And I love you. All of you, every perfectly imperfect part, and I always will," he said. Rey quirked a smile at him, something between "show off" and "that was precious."

"Can we hug some more now?" Rey's question was sweet and a little shy.

It was Poe's turn to be shy. "Of course. I love you guys. Happy birthday," he said, opening his arms, and they knelt there on the floor three-way hugging for long minutes. "I mean, we could also move this to a bed. Or...chairs?" he suggested. "Remember your old fiancé’s knees," he teased. "Also more wine?"

"More wine, then bed," Finn said. He stood and pulled Poe to his feet, then Rey. "This wine is really good, Poe. I'm glad we didn't spill it!" Finn sat down and poured more wine—first for Rey ("birthday girl," he said, and she giggled and kissed him on the cheek) and then for Poe, and finally for himself.

"Sounds like a plan. And you guys get to sleep tonight, so, fingers crossed, but if Sam wakes, I got baby duty." He clinked their glasses together. "Anyone want to propose a toast?"

"To our old fiancé whose birthday got passed by this year," Rey said, squeezing Poe's knee.

"Oh, thanks. But I've had plenty of birthdays." He nibbled some chocolate while they cooed and laughed their way through the coupon book.

When they'd finished their wine and had some more chocolate and fruit, Finn sat back and looked at his two loves. "Bedtime? Not that I'm being _impatient_...I'm kind of afraid Sam will wake up before I've had a chance to cuddle with you two," and other things, he thought, smiling sheepishly.

Poe leaned in and chased Finn's lips. "So we're redeeming the 'cuddle' coupon?" he asked.

Rey pulled them to their feet. "For starters," she said, kissing Poe and Finn in turn, and then squishing their faces together for a three-way kiss. "I like the coupons, Poe. It's kind of silly, but it does make it easier. You're better at...words, and...feelings, and I like just saying 'yes, that'. Now let’s go play coupons in bed. By my count, it's two hours until standard midnight, so we can use up all the 'daily' ones now and still have them tomorrow."

Poe laughed, surprised by this confession, and pleased. "Well, I can do my best...but two one-hour massages would take up all our time."

"Well, we could maybe skip those, this once," Finn said, and Rey snorted.

"Speak for yourself, Finnegan," she said. He frowned at her and there was a brief staring contest before Rey broke it by bouncing forward to kiss Finn's nose. "I _guess_ it can wait. Let's go." She took their hands and pulled them to the small room they now slept in more often than their quarters.

"But I _am_ going to ask for a massage daily whenever we have—oh!" Rey was saying, though she stopped at the open door to their quarters. "Oh, Poe!" she cried, because the bedroom was also decorated with candles—there were at least twenty of them, where did he _get_ them?—and another vase of flowers. There were even rose petals scattered over the bed—which was actually _made_ for once!

She glanced sharply back at Poe, who was grinning. "So I got carried away," he said, at least having the decency to pretend to be sheepish.

"I like it when you get carried away," Finn told him as he walked to the bed and picked up a rose petal to smell. "It's so pretty—I almost hate to ruin it!" He returned to Poe and put both hands on his shoulders. "You are wonderful." Rey joined them and put an arm around Poe's waist while Finn put one around his shoulders. They both turned and kissed his cheeks.

"Are you blushing?" Rey asked, laughing.

"Do I get flushed when I get to make my beloveds happy, is what you should be asking. And yes. I could very happily celebrate your birthdays every day, though the novelty might wear off, or I'd have to keep getting you bigger and better things until we somehow owned a moon and I was in debt to the Hutts." Poe grinned, wrapping an arm around each of them. "Thank you for...being so sweet, both of you. It makes it very easy to spoil you, let me tell you." He looked between them, his face beginning to hurt from all the smiling. "So are we gonna mess this bed up or what?"

"Ooh, I'll have to go through my book..." Rey laughed. "And you've been so sweet to us, I should give you _your_ birthday present early—or else very, very late—" Rey said, opening up a compartment that Poe didn't even know existed to pull out a pair of binders. They looked, if Poe didn't know any better, handmade, and he choked a little, torn between a laugh and a squawk.

"But it's _not_ my birthday!" he protested, though his eyes were shining.

"No. But it is _mine_ ," Rey said, eyes gleaming with promise, and she flopped onto the bed. "And Finn's. But you can start with a foot rub while Finn and I decide which coupons we are going to use tonight."

"You're so bossy," Finn told Rey fondly, so it was more like ‘You're so bossy and I love it so much.’ He started flipping through his own book while Poe gave Rey a foot rub. When he found a coupon for back scratching, he waved the book above his head in triumph. "This. I choose this one," he announced.

"Well? You've got two hands," Rey said imperiously.

"Hmm, I'm not positive I signed on to be your personal slave," Poe laughed, but could still rub Rey's feet individually while he scratched Finn's back with the other hand.

"I think this booklet begs to differ," Rey said.

Poe shrugged. "Who am I kidding, I do enjoy this, you're right." He grinned.

Finn hummed, arching a little against Poe's nails. He shivered and relaxed, going still. "Mmmmm, maybe we could just do this the rest of the night," he suggested. Rey petted his hair.

"Are you sure that's what you want?" she asked, and Finn shrugged.

Poe laughed. "Hey, it's your call, buddies. Want me to put on a holo? I told BB-8 to guard the ship but we've got a holo player in here."

Rey whacked Finn with his coupon book. "No. We're going to squeeze everything we can out of these 107 minutes. You better find something you want before I handcuff him and ask him to give you a lap dance."

"Actually, I vote we do that one," Poe said.

"We have a whole 107 minutes?" Finn asked as he reluctantly sat up to look through the booklet. "Okay, well, this one?" he asked, holding out the coupon. 'I get to bottom', it said, and he smiled sweetly.

Poe grinned slowly. "Mm, you want me to fuck, sweetheart? We can do that. Permission to come aboard?"

Rey hummed. "Permission granted. I can work with that. We're also redeeming this one:" 'Foreplay for 30 minutes.' "And also, you have to listen to everything I say."

"I'm not sure that's a—"

"No, you're right, it's not. You just are going to do whatever I say because you're a wonderful fiancé," she said, running her fingers through his hair and kissing him.

Poe grinned. "Yeah. That's definitely it."

"There are entirely too many clothes still on," Finn said. "Think you could fix that?" He looked pointedly at Poe.

"Hmmm, and make it look good," Rey added.

Finn shared a grin with her and they both looked at Poe. "We did say we were going to use as many of these as possible."

"Hmm, I had hoped I could come up with a complete strip tease routine before you asked for that one," Poe laughed as Rey and Finn settled back against pillows to watch. It was entirely too adorable to be borne, and didn't exactly get him in the mood for anything but wanting to snuggle, but he owed it to them to try.

"Okay, usually there's music for this kind of thing," Poe said, flicking on the bedside music player to something with a sultry beat. He started easing his shirt up and over his head, which made them laugh, until he got his hips into it and they both immediately stopped giggling.

"Oh," Rey said. This wasn't arousal, exactly, it was an...aesthetic appreciation.

Finn's mouth hung open.

"You must have practiced this," Rey said suddenly, fiercely. "I have a sudden desire to murder all your ex-lovers. Only we should see you—like this."

"Not very serene of you, Jedi," Poe teased, as he flicked open his belt with such a wry grin that it had Finn and Rey giggling again, though their cheeks were flushed.

"Hmmm, yes. Definitely never sharing," Finn said, but Poe's hips were simultaneously some kind of witchcraft and very, ridiculously silly, and he ended up giggling again when Poe gave them both what was probably supposed to be a sexy come-hither look. " _Poe_!" he laughed, "Your face!"

"So perfect, yet so ridiculous. I love you."

"Please do that again," Finn added.

And _then_ Poe was flat on his belly and wriggling out of his pants, his entire body undulating like a wave. "Do what? I can't control what my face does when I'm doing this," he smirked, mostly lying because he had total control over his face except when he was much further in the middle of sex than he was now.

"I think he means the hip thing."

There was a definite tightness in Finn's trousers.

"Oh, the hip thing." Grinning, Poe leapt up and grabbed the pipes above the bed and used these to actively sway and ripple above them in nothing but his underwear. "So I should work on a routine for the wedding night? Maybe some lingerie?" As he stretched and squirmed like a very sexy snake shedding his skin, his underwear began miraculously easing down his body, beginning to reveal the crack of his ass. He laughed suddenly. "Okay, I think that's all we got."

"Good. Stop. Get over here, Poe," Rey said suddenly, and Poe dropped down. "I want you to make Finn come without taking any of this clothes off."

Poe glanced down, mostly at Finn's fly. "I keep telling you, it's not _my_ birthday." He beamed. "Should take me almost exactly 30 minutes."

"If even that," Finn said, because having a kid to look after was not conducive to alone time with his loves and this was something he'd been missing, quietly, for like...weeks. He was pretty sure if Poe tried hard enough he'd be able to make him come just by staring at him and talking dirty to him, never mind where clothes fit into the scenario.

“But then I won’t get to fuck you.”

“That’s fine,” Finn said, probably too eagerly, for he was deeply aroused by this scenario. “But you don’t have to take your time…”

"Oh, he's going to make you wait for it," Rey said, catching the edge of all that and grinning crookedly. "Because you love it when he draws it out, and so does he, which is very rewarding for me. Win-win-win."

Smiling, Poe leaned in to kiss Rey. "Can I do anything for you, my love?"

"You already are," Rey hummed, tangling her fingers in Poe's hair and tugging gently. "If you have any strength when you're finished with Finn I should like you to braid my hair for bed. But..."

Poe was scandalized. "Any strength! My dear, you are marrying a man of _stamina_."

"Gross," Rey giggled. "Practice your stamina on Finn. Let me just..." she wriggled beneath Finn, pulling him back against her chest and grabbing his wrists in a gentle but firm hold. "There. All right, Finn?"

Poe wasted no time in crawling over Finn, invading his space but giving him a soft and gentle grin. "Hey, birthday boy," he whispered.

Finn pulled just enough on against Rey's hold to make her tighten her grip. It wasn't painful, it didn't go that far, but it felt secure. Safe. Combined with the comforting weight of Poe draped across him, speaking softly and sweetly to him, he was already in a version of his happy place.

He was also already really hard, and his clothes were a little too tight for that to be comfortable. It only made him that much more aroused.

"He's already beyond words? Hmm, I think you'd better go slower, Poe," Rey teased, releasing one of Finn's wrists to run her fingers through his hair, pressing her nails into his scalp and tugging on tufts of short hair while she kissed his neck.

"Hey, you're not allowed to help," Poe said, from the other side of Finn's neck where he was teething gently.

"I am allowed to do anything," Rey said, sounding like such a princess Poe laughed.

"Okay, okay," he huffed, nibbling on Finn's ear now, and shifting his knee between Finn's spread legs and leaning in, just a little, though judging by the bulge in his trousers he didn't need any help. Poe took Finn's free hand and twined their fingers together. "Mm, you're gorgeous, my love, my birthday guy, my buddy. You taste— _smell_ —so good. You've got Rey's smell all over you, buddy, I'm _drooling_. Want to get my mouth on you, lick up the taste of both of you." He bit down gently on his shoulder, into the jacket, until he felt Finn's flesh underneath, and then he let go, and kissed down the center of Finn's chest, over Finn's thin shirt, and nudged the jacket aside to rub his teeth against a nipple.

Finn gasped and shifted, and Poe grinned, nibbling this time, and rocked his knee between Finn's legs. "Yeah. _Yeah_ , Finno," he said, and sucked on each nipple until his shirt was wet and both had pebbled. "Mm, no fair, Rey. Wanna taste him," he moaned, almost whimpering as he began rutting against Finn's thigh.

"Stop that," Rey said in response. "You're not allowed to come yet. Certainly not first."

"You see what a tyrant she is? Think we could tickle her into changing her mind?" Poe asked, always trying to stir up trouble.

"Uh huh," Finn said, and nodded, just in case he hadn't been clear enough. The only problem, really, was that he wasn't entirely sure he _could_ initiate a tickle war just now, or really even successfully participate in one. And frankly, it would have been a little embarrassing that he was already this desperate, except he was pretty sure that Rey, for all her impeccable self-control, was pretty desperate too. Poe clearly was, so he at least had good company in this.

"Mm, yeah," Poe said, intoxicated by how they looked at him and how they _smelled_. "Me, too." He slid his hand beneath Finn's legs to cup his ass and squeeze when he kissed him this time. "Oh, Finn, I want in your pants so bad. Please, Rey, pleeeeaaaase?"

"Oh, when you're begging so prettily?" Rey actually laughed, and Poe _whined_ , growing dizzy with need.

"Hhnnhh Rey you're so _mean_ ," Poe complained, grinding their groins together now as he slid into Finn's lap.

“How do you think I feel?” Finn yelped, shifting his hips and grunting softly.

Poe’s whole body was pressed to Finn’s now. "Want to watch you come undone, want to see it in your face before your hips even twitch. Want to smell it and just bury my face in you and lick you clean and keep licking you til you're hard again and..."

_Shit, was that Sam?_

Apparently, there were a few sounds that could absolutely kill a boner stone dead. The sound of your infant son crying was very near the top of that list.

"Um," Poe said, drawing back, blinking a few times as his vision cleared.

"Is he crying?" Rey said.

They fell silent to listen.

Sam's weak cries, all the more needy because of how pathetic his small lungs still were, panged them.

"I'll go." Rey offered.

"No, it's—it’s fine," Poe said. His body's involuntary reaction was very quickly become not a problem, the more he heard Sam cry. "I got it. I told you, I got it," he said, easing back into some pants and kissing them each quickly. "Don't fall asleep on me."

Inside the baby's room (really more of a closet, though not an _actual_ closet like his room was on base, so that was nice), Sam was crying and kicking impatiently, fat, wet tears rolling down his cheeks. It was so tender and so sad that Poe melted and promptly scooped him up.

"Heyyyy, buddy, hey, my bud, what's the matter, huh?" Poe asked, rubbing his back and righting his onesie, which had gotten twisted. Sam continued crying, so Poe kissed his way down his tiny body to sniff his butt and check his diaper: but no, clean. "Maybe you had a nightmare, huh?" he asked. Sam was certainly clinging to him tightly. "Or maybe you're hungry?" He turned to go back to the galley, and was startled by a light at the door. "Whoa! Bee, you scared me!"

[I heard Friend-Tiny-Sam crying] BB-8 said. [I brought milk. I thought you were busy?]

"Aw, buddy, you shouldn't have. I got it." But Poe beamed and settled on the floor next to BB-8, at whose lights Sam went from crying to merely fussy.

[You see, he likes me] BB-8 pointed out.

"Yeah, he does. Of course he does." Poe laid Sam out on his knees so BB-8 and he could both see him, and Sam could see both of them, and checked the formula the droid brought him.

[It's the correct temperature.]

"Of course it is," Poe said, biting his lip to keep from laughing.

Sam suckled a little, but his problem seemed to be one of darkness and loneliness, so his eyelids soon began to droop. "That's it, that's my boy," Poe hummed, and BB-8 hummed, too, very softly, the same tune, and soon Sam was asleep.

Gently, carefully, Poe eased Sam back into his crib, and BB-8 trundled over by him.

[I should stay with him] BB-8 declared more than offered.

"I think he'll be okay. But you can stay with him if you like." Poe considered the picture they made. Sam and his night-light, guard droid, and nanny, all in one. "I think he'd like that."

BB-8 swiveled their head up to look at Poe. [I would like that, too.]

When Poe returned to bed, his heart was so full of love he didn't even mind that Rey and Finn seemed to have carried on without him and were now fast asleep. He huffed a laugh, hit the lights, and curled around Rey and Finn to sleep, sure he was the luckiest man in the galaxy.

…

"Aw, hell no," Finn said the next morning, waking Poe from a deep sleep.

"Finn, it can't be that bad..." Rey was saying, and when Poe blinked awake, Rey and Finn seemed to be fighting over a datapad. "Leia wouldn't send us anywhere—oh," she said, finally catching sight of the briefing.

Then she laughed.

"This is the worst birthday present ever!" Finn whined loudly. "I _hate_ Jakku. Nothing good ever happens there!" he added, tossing the data pad across to Poe. Rey was still laughing, and he gave her a look of deep betrayal.

Poe blinked. Jakku, where he had been captured, watched the slaughter of Lor San Tekka and those villagers, where he had to send BB-8 off on their own, where he and Finn had crash-landed and where Rey had been abandoned for over a decade...

Poe read through the briefing. There was apparently some First Order activity there, stirring up locals. Maybe Unkar Plutt was involved. One name stood out to Poe: Agent Terex. _Kriff me flying..._

"Well, kids. Looks like we're going back to Jakku," Poe said, and he laughed, too.

Finn moaned and flopped dramatically back to the bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, folks, if you've stuck with us this long, Stars and Skies is officially longer than _The Lord of the Rings_ , so, congratulations! 
> 
> We hope you'll stay tuned for poor Finn having to go back to Jakku, and yep, we're borrowing Agent Terex from the _Poe Dameron_ comic books (so, er, I hope they don't kill him off in canon before we post this, and if so, oops?). 
> 
> Please subscribe to the series, and thank you to everyone who kudoed or left a comment--you make the galaxy a brighter place!

**Author's Note:**

> As always, thank you for reading! And if you haven't read the rest of _Stars and Skies_ , we hope you'll check out the series.
> 
> Please consider letting us know what you like or what we can improve on in the Comments. You can also come bother us on Tumblr at [Maeglinthebold](http://maeglinthebold.tumblr.com/) and [A-singer-of-songs](http://a-singer-of-songs.tumblr.com/).


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